Mermaid Melody: Dragon Pitch
by SheerANONYMOUS
Summary: It's been a year and a half since the six Mermaid Princesses stopped Michel's evil plans and saved Seira. Now there is a new threat rising, and Lucia, Hanon and Rina have to travel to America to find a new Mermaid Princess!
1. Summerblade Meeting at Saunders high!

Mermaid Melody

Dragon Pitch

Hanon Hosho, Rina Toin and Lucia Nanami stood in line outside of Saunders High School. The three of them were Mermaid Princesses, though they kept it hidden from the students around them. Hanon stood at approximately 5'3", with short blue hair, brown eyes and glasses, as a human. In her mermaid/idol forms, she was about 5'6", with long blue hair, blue eyes and glasses. She was the Aqua Pearl Princess. Rina was 5'6" with long, seaweed green hair in both human and Idol had grey eyes as a human, and green eyes as a mermaid/idol. She was the Green Pearl Princess. Lucia was about an inch shorter than Hanon in both human and idol forms. In her human form, she had short blond hair and brown eyes. In her mermaid/idol form, she had ridiculously long blond pigtails and blue eyes. She was the Pink Pearl Princess. Each of the girls had a seashell pendant that matched the color of they're pearls, and kept the pearls safe.

A year and a half had passed since the seven Mermaid Princesses had defeated Michel. After 18 months of peace, a new threat was rising, and an eighth princess was discovered, this one a dragon. Hanon, Rina and Luchia had been sent to America to find her.

"What if she doesn't have a pendant with her?" Lucia asked. "How will we be able to find her?"

"The color of her hair." Rina said quietly.

"That's right." Hanon agreed. "Mermaid Princesses have hair and tail colors, or in the new girl's case, hair, wing and tail colors, that match the color of their pearl." Hanon looked around. "But a lot of Americans dye their hair, right?"

Rina nodded. "We have to be careful when approaching a possible match. Especially if she has no pendant."

"What's with this line, anyway?" Lucia asked. "We've been out here forever!"

"It's only been five minutes." Hanon said. "But that's a good point. Why are we out here?" The answer came another five minutes later. The school was running a security check. The girls went through and pulled out their schedules. "Aww, we don't have any of the same classes!" Hanon whined.

"That's good, we can cover more ground that way." Rina said. "And I don't have a class sixth period, which is when you two have lunch, so we can all meet then." The girls headed off to their classes, Hanon had math first, Lucia had fashion and Rina had ECC.

Flare Natsuha was the student who had held up the security check line. She had to remove her mechanical prosthetic right arm, the empty each individual weapon from it, then dig through her book bag for her wallet to get out the license she had that legally allowed her to carry and conceal the weapons. After the check, which almost got her suspended because she had forgotten to take out her Colt Anaconda revolver, she had to reload her arm and reattach it. The whole process took seven minutes, after which she went to her first period class, ECC.

Flare was about 5'8", with long red hair and red eyes. She had bangs that covered her left eye, and a small mole under her right eye. She wore a Japanese school uniform and her book bag was slung over one shoulder. She adjusted her wire-frame glasses as she walked into the classroom and took a seat by the door. As she sat, she reached into her shirt and brought out the pendant she was wearing. It was about an inch and a half thick, with a reddish tint and something resembling wings on the sides. The "wings" were a darker red than the rest of the pendant. Flare had had the pendant her whole life. So far as she knew, she'd been born with it. But she'd never been able to open it, and she could only assume it was related to her natural talent for singing and playing guitar, drums and electric keyboard. And to her being a half-dragon mermaid.

As Flare sat looking at the pendant, she thought about her past. She was illegitimate. Born in Tokyo, Japan, her mother had been raped during a trip to the grocery store. Flare's father had murdered his wife after Flare was born. Everything after that was a haze of abuse and rape. She did remember having at least one friend. A boy she'd met in preschool, who had a weird face. While other kids teased him, Flare had slowly fallen in love with the boy. Then in the sixth grade, his father talked him into getting an operation to have his face fixed. Flare was against it, saying he shouldn't be ashamed of being a freak. She wasn't, so why should he? The boy had asked what she meant, but something in the back of Flare's mind had told her that it would be fatal to tell him what she really was. He went through with the operation, and died. That same night, Flare's house caught fire, and her father was trapped inside. Flare had run off to America, taking the family fortune with her. She bought a house in Yonkers, New York, finished middle school, lost her arm, built the replacement, applied for her weapons license after getting a green card, started high school at Saunders, and...

The pendant started glowing, jerking Flare from her thoughts. She quickly stuffed the pendant back down her shirt and looked around. All the students had arrived, and no one seemed to have noticed the glowing pendant. But, was that new girl, with the long green hair _staring_ at her?

Flare was the first person to leave at the end of the two period class. She hung around until she saw the green haired girl, according to attendance, her name was Rina, leave the room, Flare continued walking. She suddenly felt a tap on her shoulder.

"Your name was Flare, right?" The girl asked.

"Yes." Flare replied.

"I noticed your pendant, earlier. Where did you get it?"

"Oh, some souvenir shop in... Puerto Rico." Flare lied.

"Cool." Rina said. "It makes a good flash light, too, it seems."

"What?" Flare asked.

"You forgot to make it stop glowing." Rina pointed at the feint red glow on Flare's shirt. "You should turn it off before the batteries die." Flare hesitated, then took the pendant out.

"Umm... I don't know how to work it." She said weakly.

"You're a bad liar." Rina said. She reached into her own shirt and took out a pendant almost identical to Flare's, except it was green. And glowing. Flare got a nagging feeling in the back of her mind.

"Maybe this isn't the best place to discuss this." She said. Rina nodded. "I have sixth period lunch, we can discuss it then." Flare turned around and walked away.

_How did she know I would be available sixth period?_ Rina wondered. Then she realized she was holding her schedule.

"Rina!" Lucia called. She and Hanon ran up to Rina, who was standing outside of the CID classroom on the basement level of the school, staring into the cafeteria. "Any luck?" Lucia asked.

"Yes, as a matter of fact." Rina said. "She was in my ECC class. Our pearls reacted to each other."

"Odd." Hanon said. "Like, they both started glowing?" Rina nodded. "I hope that didn't attract attention."

"I don't think so." Rina said. "There she is now." Rina pointed across the cafeteria. Flare was on the other side, eating a chocolate bar and walking towards them.

"Let's get some food." She said. "We can talk outside." The four girls got their lunch and Flare led them out of the building, across the soccer field, passed two baseball diamonds and across the track-encircled football field, to the stone bleachers. Once they sat down, Flare introduced herself. "My name is Flare Natsuha." She said. Rina then introduced herself, then Lucia, then Hanon.

"So you're the eighth Mermaid Princess?" Lucia asked.

"Apparently." Flare said, unwrapping her ham and cheese sandwich. "I'm also a half-dragon." She started eating her sandwich, staring at the ice cream truck across the street from the parking lot, watching security guards coming from and going to lunch. "I'm guessing there is a reason you three came out here looking for me?" The girls nodded.

"We may need your help." Rina said.

"The fortune teller at my kingdom predicted a threat to both the human and mermaid worlds." Lucia said.

"And my kingdom was attacked." Hanon said.

"Attacked?" Flare asked, almost choking on her lunch. "How? Why?"

"I don't know. But we were attacked by several giant monsters, and some kind of black cloud." Hanon hesitated, adjusting her glasses. "But... The cloud happened before, when Gaito tried to kidnap the seven Mermaid Princesses..."

"Talk about Deja vu..." Flare said. "Wait... That can't be right. Deja vu means a glitch in the Matrix... But you said there were dragons involved?" Hanon nodded. Something was eating away at the back of Flare's mind again.


	2. The Power of Rock

The Time Dragon stood in his realm, a dark, swirling space with no solid space or time within it. The Time Dragon himself was a massive, two headed creature. Standing on two legs, he was shorter in scale than most bipedal dragons, with teal scales and wings where it's arms/forelegs would be. He roared, and thousands of machine parts appeared, forming into one mechanical dragon.

"Master?" The dragon growled.

"It is time." The Time Dragon said, bot heads speaking at once.

"The girl is discovering who she is." The left head spoke now. "She cannot be allowed to discover her power now that the other princesses have found them. Kill them all, and do it fast. Her other half is coming."

"Could you spell that, please?" Flare said into the phone, speaking Japanese. She was standing behind the counter of her hotel, prepairing reservations. "D... O... M..." Flare wrote the letters down as she recited them. "And that's your first name or last name? Okay, and your first name... K... A... Yeah... Got it, thanks. And this is for just you, or are you bringing friends? Right, so two rooms and... What kind of pet? I guess, birds should be okay. Thanks, see you tomorrow!" Flare hung up the phone as Luchia, Hanon and Rina came into the lobby. "You three settled in?" Flare asked.

"Yup!" Lucia said.

"Thank you for letting us stay here, Flare." Rina said.

"No problem, but it's not going to be free." Flare said. "I do need some help around here, I'm a bit understaffed at the moment." Flare walked out from behind the desk. "By the way, we've got guests coming from Japan tomorrow. They'll only be here for a few days, then they're going to Florida for a surfing contest."

"Surfing contest?" Lucia asked, quietly.

"Any way," Flare continued, "lets go get some dinner. There's a nice place across the street."

The Dragon Pearl Inn was located on the Yonkers Riverfront. It had once been an appartment complex that was going out of business, so Flare had bought the building and renovated it. To the left of the front entrance was the Hudson River. Flare had advised the girls not to swim in it unless nessessary. There was a large, two story peir that juted out into the river. Flare thought it was a restaurant, but she wasn't positive. To the right of the entrance to the Dragon Pearl, the street went into an underpass. The overpass was for trains, and attatched to the Yonkers Rail Road station. Farther that way was the Yonkers Riverfront Library, The Yonkers DMV, and several other buildings and side roads leading up to Getty Square. Across from the Dragon Pearl were several restaurants. The one that Flare led the girls to was the Peirview. They sat outside, and discussed the dragons and Deja Vu.

"So you think that the last attack on your kingdom was a near carbon copy of the first?" Flare asked. Hanon nodded.

"Except for the dragons, yes." She said. "It's really disturbing."

""Actually, now that I think about it," Lucia said, "when I left my kingdom, the was a storm that was identical to the one when I first fled the kingdom two years ago."

"Interesting..." Flare said, more to herself than the other three.

"What?" Rina asked.

"It could be a time dragon." Flare said. "But... There's just one left, and it was locked away somewhere."

"Where did you learn that?" Hanon asked.

"I don't think I learned it anywhere..." Flare said. "I just..." There was suddenly a loud, mechanical roar. Flare, Hanon, Lucia and Rina all stood up, shortly followed by other curious people. A giant mechanical dragon rose from the Hudson River, sinking several near-by boats and overturning a barge. The dragon looked around, it's shining red eyes focusing and zooming.

"What the hell is that!?" Lucia cried. The dragon saw them, and let out another, gear-grinding roar. A blast of super heated blue-green plasma spewed from it's mouth. Hanon and Lucia screamed and clung to eachother, as large metal plates extended from the sides of Flare's mechanical arm, ancting as a shield for her, Lucia, Rina and Hanon.

When the plasma stopped, Flare detatched the smouldering, molten metal shield, screaming, "Run!" The four girls took off and ducked between two buildings.

"What do we do?" Hanon asked. Flare's mind was racing.

"The only thing we can do is fight it." She said. "We can't run from this thing, and we can't hide here forever."

"She's right." Rina said. "Come on!" Hanon, Lucia and Rina's pendants opened, and they transformed into their Idol forms.

"Wait, this is how you fight?" Flare asked. "You _sing_ at your enemies?"

"If they come at us with hate in their hearts, than our songs of pure love will send them away!" Lucia said.

"Whatever floats your boat, kid." Flare said.

"Flare, you have this power too!" Hanon said. Flare stared at them. Though in their Idol forms they were slightly taller, looking at Hanon and Lucia's frilly miniskirts and Rina's... Ball gown (Flare couldn't find another way to describe it), Flare was immediately disinterested.

"Thanks, but I'll pass." She said.

"We don't have time for this!" Rina shouted, pointing at the end of the alley. The dragon's eye was clearly visible, staring right at them. Hanon, Lucia and Rina ran out of the alley. Flare heard Lucia say, "Pichi Pichi Voice Live Start!" She could see them, floating in the air in a bubble of pure white light, singing to music that was coming from thin air. Even though the bubble protected the three girls from the dragon's attacks, their song was having the same effect on the dragon.

_It's a catchy tune, I admit..._ Flare said, _But something like that won't do shit to a dragon. They must have had some pretty weak enemy's in the past._ Flare looked at her pendant. _Besides, I couldn't do that even if I wanted to, I can't get this damn thing open! _The pendant suddenly started glowing. The light enveloped her, and she found herself instinctively shouting "Red Pearl Song!" When the light faded, Flare thought she'd boched the transformation and just shifted to her half dragon form. But then she realized that she had changed to an Idol form of her own. She was wearing a torn blue jean skirt, a black, spiked wristband on her left arm and a short, black, flame print top. Instead of a microphone, Flare had a headset, and she was carrying an electric guitar. Flare flew out of the alley just as the girls' song had ended.

"So you've changed your mind?" Hanon teased.

"This is no time to be joking!" Flare and Rina shouted in unison. The dragon suddenly whiped it's tail around and smashed Flare into the side of a building. Flare nearly wet herself. Three inches from her neck, where the dragon's tail had caught her, the tail ended with a massive axe blade. Had Flare been any farther away she would have been dead. Instead, Flare pushed the tail away, caught her breath, and flew at the dragon, holding her guitar like a baseball bat. She swung upwards, catching the iron menace in the chin and sending it toppling backwards. Then Flare noticed a bright red glow as her pearl, which had embedded itself in the headset's ear piece, broke away and shattered. "What?" Flare asked in disbelief.

"What just happened?" Lucia asked. Three of the pearl's shards sank into Hanon, Lucia and Rina's pendants, while the rest of Flare's pearl recombined to form the whole pearl again. "What's going on...?" Lucia asked. The three Mermaid Princesses were forced into another transformation. As they did, the ground vibrated violently, and a giant clam shell rose from the Hudson River. It opened to reveal a stage set for a rock band. Flare stood at the front, with her guitar and headset. A dazed and confused Lucia stood next to her with a base guitar. She was still in her Idol form, but now she was wearing a blue jean skirt like Flare's, and a pink tank top that had Mermaid Melody printed on it. Rina stood behind an electric keyboard and a microphone, looking bewildered. Her new outfit was a longer blue jean skirt that was similar in stile to her original dress. She had a green, strapless top that also read Mermaid Melody. Hanon was sitting behind a set of drums that said Pichi Pichi Voice. She was wearing jean shorts and an aqua short leaved shirt that had the sleeves torn off. Her shirt said Mermaid Melody on it as well.

"This is... Interesting..." Flare said.

"What happened to our clothes?" Luchia asked.

"I think I liked our old outfits better." Hanon said. Rina remained quiet, looking at the electric keyboard. The dragon slowly got back to it's feet and roared. "What the hell do we do now!?" Hanon asked.

"I don't know, fight with music?" Flare said. "Obviously, we need something more powerful than love to fight these things, and though in general, there isn't anything stronger, for music it seems that that would be rock!" Flare began playing her guitar, and the other girls quickly joined in, almost immediately grasping their instruments. The dragon let out a roar of pain. Flare couldn't believe it was working, but started singing. Sparks and steam poured out of the dragon, and it's movements became slower. People on the street began watching in shock and wonder. Someone had called the police, and the sirens of the arriving patrol cars managed to mix in with the music. No one could believe what they were seeing. Flare was part of it, and she believed it even less. The dragon let out a sonic blast. Glass shattered, the police sirens ground to a halt and the speakers on stage blew out or exploded. All four girls covered their ears.

"Now what?" Rina asked. Flare's heart sank. But the dragon was too weak to fight. It slowly turned around and clumsily flew off.

"We... Won..." Flare said quietly. Then she shouted it. "We won! I don't freaking believe it! Hanon and Rina came down to the main floor of the stage, and the four girls hugged each other.

The mecha dragon lay in a smoldering heap before the Time Dragon. "You've failed me!" The Time Dragon shouted.

"I... apologize..." The right head of the Time Dragon shot fire at the mecha dragon.

"That is why you have failed!" Both heads shouted. "You are weak! I have others that are stronger, even you, I have more of! You are just a machine! A child's plaything! You no longer serve purpose." With that, the mecha dragon exploded. From a forged shadow, a new dragon slithered out. It looked like a snake, except for it's wings, forearms and it's snout. Though it was green in color, it's eyes were yellow, and it had a black bone plate on it's forehead.

"It'sss My turn now," The dragon said, it's voice slightly feminine. "Yesss?"

The Time Dragon looked at her. "The girl's other half will arrive soon." He said.

"Other half?"

"One who has a power that can combine with hers and create a powerful force. They've never met before, but he and her friend, Lucia, are very much in love. It is not within the girl's nature to trust those who hurt her friends."

The snake like dragon smiled, the began laughing. "I underssstand, My Lord." She said, and slithered away.

**I made a mistake in the first chapter. Lucia was actually _taller_ than Hanon. Anyway, this is the first fight, where Flare's Idol form is discovered, among other, forshadowy events. Also, I want to mention that, since this original concept "gave birth" to Flare, this story will most likely take priority over her crossover series.**


	3. Arrivals

Flare stood at the front desk the next morning. Hanon, Lucia and Rina had already left for school, and Flare had sent a note to the office in with them. After about an hour, the hotel doors opened and five people walked in, followed by a small, light blue penguin in a sailor suit of some kind. There were three boys and two women in the group. One of the boys broke away from the group and walked up to the front desk. He was about 5'5-1/2", with brown eyes and spiky orange hair.

"Hello." Flare said. "You must be Kaito-san." Kaito nodded. Flare turned to the computer and said, "Your rooms will be ready in a minute." She looked towards the rest of the group. "Two rooms, one for the boys, one for the girls... Who's the penguin staying with?" Flare caught herself as she said "penguin" and stared at the bird. "That's a penguin!" She said, shocked.

"Yes." Kaito said. "Yes he is."

"But penguins can't survive out here, it's too hot!"

"He's a... Special kind of penguin." Kaito said. "And he's staying with the women.." Flare nodded blankly, and turned back to her computer.

"A-anyway..." Said Flare, just one more..." The computer's screen began to flicker. "What the...? No! Stop that!" Flare said. The computer went dead. "Damn it!" Flare shouted.

"What happened?" Kaito asked.

"My computer crashed. It'll take a while to fix, and depending on how bad it is, I may have to reassign everything. Damn... You should sit down, you can sit over there."

"Thanks." Kaito said. He walked over to a lounge area, and his friends went over and sat with him. Then another girl walked in. She was about 5'4" tall, with long brown hair and amber eyes.

"Hi, sorry to bother you," The girl said, walking up to the front desk, "but, do you have any open rooms?" The girl leaned over the desk. "I'm having issues with my parents, and I need some space for a few days." Flare was still fiddling with her computer.

"I might, but my computers having trouble at the moment. Go wait over there please." Flare pointed to the lounge area where Kaito's group was sitting. The girl sat next to him.

"Hi!" She said. "I'm Stephanie. What's your name?"

"Kaito."

"Cool." Stephanie said. "How long are you here for?"

"A few days. Then we have a flight to Miami, Florida, for a surfing contest."

"A surfing contest?" Stephanie asked. "Really cool. I'm only here because I'm having family issues." Stephanie hesitated a bit. "Are you doing anything later?"

"We're going out for dinner." Kaito said.

"'We'?" Stephanie asked.

"My friends and I." Kaito said. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason!" Stephanie said, suddenly seeming very shy.

"I think she's asking you out!" Flare called from under the desk. She started to get up, but bumped her head. "Ouch!" She shouted. She got up again, this time with more luck. "You should go, she's kinda cute." Nagisa, the youngest of the group, turned towards Kaito.

"But you have a girl friend." He said.

"That's right." Kaito said, somewhat as if he had forgotten. "I do have a girl friend." Stephanie sighed.

"Then how about just surfing lessons? Just one friend teaching another friend how to surf?" Kaito thought it over.

"The last time that happened..." He started to say, but Stephanie cut him off.

"Forget the last time!" She said. "The 'last time' is in the past! It's done with, never coming back."

"Fixed it!" Flare cried happily. Kaito got up and walked over to the desk. "Kaito, your room is 320, on the 3rd floor. Your female friends will be next do..." The screen fizzled again, and the women's room number changed. "Um... Okay, they'll be above you in 420." She printed out the card keys and handed them to Kaito. Stephanie, our only available room is... 321?" That had originally been the girl's room. Flare printed out the card key, and watched Stephanie as she left.

"Wow, this is a nice room!" Nagisa said excitedly. The room had two beds, a large bathroom, and a view of the Hudson River. Kaito looked out over the river, and found himself thinking of Lucia as the third boy, Hamasaki, started to unpack.

The girls returned home to find Flare still fiddling with the computer.

"What are you doing?" Lucia asked.

"This stupid computer glitched out this morning, and I think a few rooms were changed. I'm trying to figure out what happened." Flare opened a virus scanner and a file log, and ran them both at the same time. "Our new guests are here, though." She added, trying to stay positive.

"Who are our guests?" Rina asked.

"A group of about five people, registered under the name..."

"Kaito!" Lucia shouted.

"Yeah," Flare said, still absorbed in her computer. "How did you know?" Kaito's group had just walked out of the elevator, and everyone stared at each other in mild disbelief.

"L-Lucia?" Kaito asked. Lucia ran over and hugged him.

"Hanon!" Nagisa cried. "I thought I wouldn't ever see you again!" Hanon smiled. "When did you start wearing glasses?" Nagisa asked.

"Oh, it's a long story..." Hanon said, trying to come up with something that didn't involve seaweed and an angry octopus. "I'll tell you some other time..."

"Rina...!" Hamasaki said. Rina stared at him in disbelief.

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I was invited to watch one of Kaito's surfing contests." Hamasaki said. "We're going on to Miami, Florida next week."

"So, you're only here for seven days..." Rina said, sounding slightly upset.

"We'll just have to make the most of our time together." Hamasaki said, hugging Rina. Flare turned away from her computer while it scanned itself.

"If you guys are going to Florida, then what made you stop here?" She asked.

"It was Taki's idea." Kaito said. Then Hanon and Luchia noticed the two women. Madam Taki, the older woman, was a fortune teller and owned a hotel in Japan where the two girls had stayed two years prior. The younger woman, Nikora, was from Lucia's mermaid kingdom. They both smiled, and Nikora winked at the girls.

"So, you're going to be here for a while." Kaito said. He and Lucia were sitting on a bench overlooking the Hudson.

"Yeah." Lucia said. "But we may not necessarily be in Yonkers, or even America the entire time. Flare thinks it was dumb luck that all of the Mermaid Princesses ended up in Japan last time."

"Then you should come to Florida with us." Kaito said. "You might find someone there. Besides, after my last surfing contest here in the US, it might be good to have you along."

"You dummy!" Lucia shouted. "Don't joke about something like that!" Kaito laughed.

In the Time Dragon's realm, a bipedal dragon stood before the Time Dragon. It held a long chain, and at the end of the chain stood the Karen, the Purple Pearl Mermaid Princess. The Time Dragon's left head nodded, and the other dragon, as well as the chains, disappeared.

"What the hell is this place?" Karen asked.

"It is..." The Time Dragon thought for a moment. "Exactly as you said it. 'Hell'."

"W-why am I here?"

"You will help me capture four Mermaid Princesses. Green, Aqua, Pink, and Red."

"Like hell I am!" Karen shouted. "There isn't even a princess with a red pearl!" A mecha dragon appeared behind Karen.

"There is." The Time Dragon's left head said. "And you will." The right head finished. The mecha dragon dove at Karen, fusing itself with her. Karen screamed in pain. Her purple eyes turned red, wires ran down her arms, her tail became mechanical, and mechanical wings grew from her back. Inside her pendant, her pearl turned grey. Karen's body shook violently for a few minutes, and then the changes disappeared, except for a black, tattoo like mark on her back. "Kill them if you must." The Time Dragon said. "But bring me their pearls!"

Karen stood quietly for a minute. Then she said, "Yes, my master."

**I don't think I did too well with the male characters, and I may not do much better in the future, either. Anyway, enjoy!**


	4. Shattered Crystals

Kaito awoke to a knock on his door. He looked at the clock. Eight PM. Nagisa and Hamasaki weren't in the room. Kaito groaned and got up.

"I told you both to bring a room key!" He said, opening the door.

"I don't have a key to this room," Stephanie said, smiling. "But I can get one if you want."

"What do you want?" Kaito asked.

"I just wanted to know if you would want to go to the restaurant across the street." Stephanie said.

"I told you already," Said Kaito, "I have a girlfriend." He attempted to close the door, but Stephanie stopped him.

"Come on." Stephanie said. "Ditch the kid and have some real fun."

"No." Kaito said. "Leave me alone!" He forced the door closed, almost crushing Stephanie's foot.

"Fine then!" Stephanie shouted. "I'll just go on my own! But if something happens to me it's on your head!" She stormed angrily down the hall. Sitting alone at the Pier View, She fumed over her failure at steering Kaito away from his girlfriend.

"Do you want to order know, or shall I wait for your date to arrive?" A waiter asked.

"He's not coming." Stephanie said. "Just get me a glass of water and a cheeseburger, rare."

"I'm sorry, ma'am, we don't serve rare meat." The waiter said.

"Damn it, give me what I ordered, or go finish college!" Stephanie shouted. The waiter hesitated, then walked away. After a few minutes, he came back with the water. But he almost dropped the glass when he saw her through it.

_A d-d-d-dragon!?_ He thought. _B-but that's... How...? _He put the water on the table and hurried away. What he had seen through the glass of water was a green, snake-like dragon, with wings, a black plate one its forehead and forearms. Twenty minutes later he brought her burger. "O-on the house." He said, trying to smile. Then he dashed of, almost colliding with another waiter.

The next day, Flare ran into the waiter as she left the Dragon Pearl.

"E-excuse me." The man said. "You wouldn't happen to know who owns this hotel, would you?"

"That would be me." Flare replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, this is going to sound so silly, but... I think one of your guests is... Well, a dragon!" Flare looked at the man.

"What?" She asked. "Why do you say that?"

"Well, she was at the Pier View last night while I was working... She was supposed to be there with a date, so I had gotten out the crystal glasses..."

"Nice." Flare said.

"Yes, but when I saw the girl through her glass, she was... a dragon! She signed the bill as Stephanie Karera." Flare's eyes widened.

"Uh, thanks." She said, taking the glass. Flare walked back into the building. "Stephanie's a dragon?" She asked herself. "That can't be possible, I would have noticed…"

Someone was pounding furiously on Kaito's door.

"Hold on!" He shouted. He unlocked the door, and Stephanie immediately pushed in and moved Kaito towards the bed, kissing him.

_ I'm running out of time._ She thought. She pushed Kaito over and started kissing him.

"What are you doing!?" Kaito shouted. He tried to push Stephanie off of him, but she was stronger.

"Kaito, what the hell are you doing!?" Kaito felt like he'd been punched in the stomach as he heard Lucia shriek. She was standing in the open doorway, tears streaming down her face.

"Beat it, brat." Stephanie said. "The big kids are playing."

"Bastard!" Lucia shouted, running down the hall. Stephanie smiled.

"So how'd you guys end up here?" Hanon asked.

"We were actually looking for you three." Nikora said. "To see if you'd had any luck finding the eighth Mermaid Princess."

"They have." Flare said, walking into the lobby.

"It was easier than we thought it would be." Rina said. "She goes to the school we transferred into."

"So she's the eighth Mermaid Princess..." Nikora said, looking at Flare. Lucia suddenly came running into the room, sobbing hysterically.

"Lucia, what's wrong?" Hanon asked.

"I just walked in on Kaito and Stephanie!" Lucia sobbed.

"What?" Hanon gasped. Flare clenched her teeth.

"What do you mean, 'walked in'?" She asked.

"They were..." Lucia started to say, but she couldn't finish the sentence before she fell to the floor in tears. "I don't even want to think about what they were doing!" Lucia sobbed into the carpet.

"Lucia!" Kaito shouted, running into the lobby. Lucia, listen to me!"

"Why the hell should she!?" Flare exploded, rounding on him. "You've got some nerve trying to pull that dumb ass retarded stunt!"

"It wasn't my..."

"Shove it!" Hanon shouted. "How could you do this to Lucia? She stuck her neck out to try and convey her feelings for you! She saved your life on multiple occasions, and this is how you thank her!?"

"I think you've over stayed your welcome here." Flare said darkly. "Pack your bags and move along to Miami. And maybe you can find someone else to utterly destroy while your there." Flare began to walk away, but turned around again. "And I hope you fall off of your damn surfboard and drown!" She shouted. Then she led Lucia into another room, with Hanon, Rina and Nikora followed silently.

"Bastard." Rina mumbled. All Kaito could do was stand there, dumb struck.

**Not quite as long as I thought it was... Sorry for the time gap, by the way. I've been wrestling with some serious writers block.**


	5. Stephanie's Secret

A few minutes afterwards, Flare walked back into the main lobby to find Stephanie standing at the front desk.

"I'm checking out." She said.

"Oh, good." Flare replied. "I was just about to kick your sorry ass out anyway." Flare walked behind the desk and booted up the computer.

"That's a pretty glass." Stephanie said, pointing at the crystal wine glass on the desk.

"Uh-huh." Flare said, trying to ignore the girl. Suddenly, Flare heard it shatter.

As Stephanie said, "Oops!", Flare looked up in time to see a large shard fly in front of the other girl. Flare gasped as the crystal shard revealed Stephanie's true form.

Then she quickly regained her composure.

"I hope that wasn't expensive." Stephanie said sarcastically.

"It was a loan." Flare replied. "One of the waiters at the restaurant across the street gave it to me this morning..." Flare quickly pulled a gold plated Desert Eagle from a holster on her thigh, and shot Stephanie point blank between the eyes.

"What was that?" Nikora shouted, rushing into the room. The other girls followed behind.

Flare stood with the gun aimed at Stephanie, whose head was bent backwards.

"What the hell did you just do?" Rina shouted.

"Flare," Nikora said slowly, "She may have done something horrible, but that doesn't give you the right to..."

"The bullet..." Flare interrupted. "It didn't penetrate her skull..."

"But I will have a nasty mark there for a while, thanks to you." Stephanie said, realigning her head.

"What the hell?" Hanon's voice was barely a whisper.

"She's a dragon." Flare said.

Stephanie began to laugh. "I'm surprised. I thought I had done a pretty good job hiding my sent."

"You did." Flare replied. "But you didn't count on the crystal glasses at the Pier View exposing your true form, which is why," Flare nodded towards the shattered glass. "You quickly smashed the glass your waiter gave me..."

"You've got some guts, shooting someone in the head just from that." Stephanie said.

"You'd be right, under ordinary circumstances. But the bullets in this gun, and this one gun itself, are specially designed. The gun doesn't have to much more power than a Nerf gun, and the bullets, though solid, will only cause minor skull damage and possible loss of consciousness, but not death, in a healthy Human, despited the power it clearly still has. But these aren't normal circumstances." Flare smiled. "You miscalculated my reflexes when you smashed the glass. You also miscalculated a proper way to smash it. A way that _wouldn't _send an all-too revealing shard between us." Stephanie's smile faded slightly. "Also, it's one thing for to people in a given location to have the same first or last name, but unlikely for it to be the same combination."

"What?" Hanon asked.

"She gave me the name Stephanie Karera." Flare said. "And I'm pretty sure Stephanie Karera goes to our school."

"He warned me you would be clever." The girl said. Flare lunged at her, and both went full dragon as the force of Flare's attack sent the two flying through the front wall. Cars swerved and people ran screaming as the two dragons fought each other. Hanon, Lucia and Rina ran through the hole in the wall and watched as Flare fought the other dragon.

"Come on!" Rina said, leading the girls back into the building. They quickly transformed into their base Idol forms. "We have to distract that other dragon. It'll give Flare a chance to get back to us."

As the three girls ran out, Hamasaki and Nagisa ran into the lobby from the basement arcade. Hamasaki caught a glimpse of Rina as she ran out.

"What happened?" Nagisa shouted, running up to Nikora as music started playing outside.

"Go upstairs!" Nikora ordered. "Both of you!"

"But where did every one...?"

"Now!" Nikora shouted.

Hamasaki grabbed Nagisa. "Come on." He said.

With the other dragon distracted, Flare grabbed it's tail in her jaws and tossed it across the Hudson River into a rocky cliff face in New Jersy. It wasn't much of a distance, but it was enough. Flare changed into her half dragon form and flew over to the Mermaid Princesses.

"Ready?" She asked. The girls nodded, and Flare opened her pendant.

As Nagisa and Hamasaki stood in the elevator, Hamasaki finally said; "I just saw Rina run outside."

"What?" Nagisa shouted. "Are you sure?" Hamasaki nodded. Suddenly, the elevator shut down.

"Shit..." Flare swore, looking around. "I think we need to either practice controlling this thing, or do this over water from now on." The seashell stage had risen from the ground, tearing pipes and wires from the ground. Cars had been toppled over, and a telephone pole had fallen over.

"Worry about that later!" Hanon shouted, pointing her drumstick at the dragon, which was rapidly approaching. The four girls began to play, and Flare began singing;

"I'll lay me down tonight

Much further down

Swim in the calm tonight

This art does drown"

The Dragon stopped suddenly, as if it had hit an invisible wall. It fell to the ground and began to writhe in pain. "It's working!" Hanon shouted. Flare continued singing.

"(What follows) me as the whitest lace of light

(Will swallow whole) just begs to be imbrued?

(What follows) has led me to this place

where I belong, with all erased

What follows

All insects sing tonight

The coldest sound

I'd send God's grace tonight

Could it be found?"

The dragon spat a weak fireball at the stage, but it was deflected. It roared in agony.

"(What follows) me as the whitest lace of light

(Will swallow whole) just begs to be imbrued?

(What follows) has led me to this place

where I belong, with all erased

I'll lay me down tonight

Much further down

Watch stars go out tonight

On sinking ground

I'll lay me down, I'll lay me down

"You..." The dragon shouted. "You... I won't forget this!" It weakly tried to fly away. Rina began singing in Flare's place, and used her keyboard to mimic the guitar notes.

"(What follows) me as the whitest lace of light

(Will swallow whole) just begs to be imbrued?"

"Need a boost?" Flare shouted. She flew at the dragon and batted it with her guitar, sending it into New Jersy.

(What follows) has led me to this place

where I belong, with all erased

What follows will swallow whole

What follows will swallow whole"

Flare had booted up a reserve power generator for the hotel, but they were still without gas or running water. So everyone was stuck with microwavable foods and soda, iced tea, lemonade and fruit punch for dinner. The girls sat eating in Flare's office.

"Talk about dead weight." Flare said, examining the dent in her guitar.

"We'll have to be careful." Rina said. "Now that we know the dragons can hide among humans."

"I've got that taken care of." Flare said, moving her bangs and tapping the left lens of her glasses. I replaced the glass with a piece of the crystal glass. It'll be risky, because it works both ways, but it'll hopefully be hard to spot because of my bangs."

"Clever." Hanon said.

"But wouldn't that be to much of a risk?" Rina asked.

"I've asked Madam Taki to see if she can make it one-way, but it may take some time." Flare took a bite of her lasagna. "But at least we won't have another incident like Stephanie... Oh, shit."

"What?" Lucia asked.

Flare stood up, almost knocking her cherry cola over. "Stephanie was a dragon, which means that the reason she was here was to... Oh, _shit!_ We have to go, _now!_" Flare bolted out of the room, the other three close behind.

"Where are you going?" Nikora asked.

"To fix something I helped break." Flare said.

"What are you talking about?" Asked Hanon.

"The four of us," Flare said, "are going to Miami."


	6. The Brewing Storm

"Flight attendants, prepare for departure."

"So you're saying that this Time Dragon sent that girl here to split up Kaito and Lucia?" Rina asked. Flare nodded slowly.

"But why?" Hanon asked.

"I'm not sure." Flare replied. "What happens to a mermaid with a broken heart?"

"Her hair and tail would turn black." Rina said.

"She wouldn't be very nice any more." Hannon added. Flare looked over at Lucia. It already looked like her blonde hair had streaks of black creeping up it.

"Shit…" Flare swore. She looked out the window. From the plane's height, she could see the edge of the planet. New York's sky scrapers were already miniscule metallic pinpricks in the distance. With nothing better to do, Flare began to sing softly;

"In December, drinking horchata

I'd look psychotic in a balaclava."

Hanon joined in.

"Winter's cold is too much to handle  
Pincher crabs that pinch at your sandals"

The plane had to circle around the Miami airport before they could land, but shortly the four girls stepped out into the hot Miami sun.

_In December, drinking horchata  
Look down your glasses at that aranciata_  
_With lips and teeth to ask how my day went  
Boots and fists to pound on the pavement_

Flare, Hanon and Rina asked around for the surfing contest Kaito was entered in while Lucia waited for a taxi.

_Here comes a feeling you thought you'd forgotten  
Chairs to sit and sidewalks to walk on  
_  
_You'd remember drinking horchata  
You'd still enjoy it with your foot on masada_

Flare finally found some one who told her the address of the hotel hosting the contest. She thanked the man and collected Hanon and Rina. Lucia was holding a cab for them.

_Winter's cold is too much to handle  
Pincher crabs that pinch at your sandals_

Flare gave the driver the address of the hotel, and the taxi drove off.

_Here comes a feeling you thought you'd forgotten  
Chairs to sit and sidewalks to walk on  
Oh you had it but oh no you lost it  
Looking back you shouldn't have fought it…_

The taxi driver had to let the girls off a block and a half away. The Hotel's street was closed, and traffic was beginning to back up. Flare paid the driver as the girls got out, and they ran the rest of the way to the Courtyard Miami Beach Oceanfront, dragging their luggage behind them.

Pushing through the crowd of people in the street, it took them ten minutes to get to the hotel. Over a series of temporary loudspeakers, an announcer was introducing the surfers. Flare had to lead the girls through the hotel to the beach.

"Up next, Japan's reining champion, Kaito Domoto!" Flare was surprised at how easily the guy said Kaito's last name. She'd grown up speaking Japanese and had still had trouble pronouncing "Domoto."

"We can catch him as he gets out of the water!" Hanon said.

"Right!" Flare nodded, leading them through the crowd to the shore line. As they watched Kaito surf, Something caught Rina's attention, and she walked off.

"Kaito doesn't seem to be doing as well as usual." Hanon said.

"Maybe he's distracted." Flare said, smiling and nudging Lucia in the ribs. "Thinking about you."

"Or Stephanie." Lucia groaned. The black in her hair seemed to get worse.

"I'm sure it's you." Flare said. "Stephanie was a dragon, remember?"

"Kaito didn't know that!" Lucia cried. Her hair had gone from dirty blonde with black streaks to black with dirty blonde streaks.

"Come on, don't think that way!" Hanon jumped in. "I'm sure we all just jumped to conclusions! After everything you to have been through, He wouldn't just drop you for some other girl!"

"Stop it!" Lucia screamed. Her hair was now completely black. "Stop lying! We all know he wanted her more than me!" A heavy storm appeared. "He's done it before, he'd do it again!"

The announcer shouted something, and Flare and Hanon turned around just in time to see a giant tidal wave take Kaito down as Lucia ran off. "Shit!" Flare swore. People began screaming, and someone blew a whistle.

"Caren?" Rina called, stepping into an old and rather large tool shed.

"Hello, Rina." Caren replied, stepping out of the shadows.

"So it was you." Rina said, smiling. "For a second, I thought I was going crazy. What are you doing in here?"

"Waiting for someone." Caren said.

"Oh. Oh! Well, I guess I'll just, uh…"

"Don't worry about it." Caren said. "She's already here." Rina was about to say something when a crack of thunder and a series of screams made her turn around.

"You know, you could have just…" Rina began, but something cold and metalinc grabbed her arm and pulled her into the shed.


	7. Chapter 7

"Come on!" Flare shouted, running towards the water.

"Wait!" Hanon cried. "What happened to Lucia and Rina?"

"Uh, crap… You find them, but I'm not letting that idiot drown!" Flare ran into the ocean, but a wind-blown surfboard whacked her in the face, knocking her over, breaking her nose and snapping her glasses. She swore heavily and fused the metal back together. As she dove into the water, she didn't notice the crystal lens floating away. When Flare reached Kaito, Rina and Caren were already with him. "Oh, good." Flare said. "You've got him. Whose she?"

"That's Caren." Rina said. Neither mermaid made any attempt to swim Kaito to the surface.

"What the hell are you waiting for?" Flare asked, swimming towards them.

Caren Blocked her path. "No." She said.

"What?"

"She said 'No'." Rina's voice was a perfect match for Caren when she repeated the word 'no'.

"What the hell?" Flare moved her hair out of her face, where it covered the crystal lens. But it wasn't there. Flare swore, then she faked left and dove behind them. They both had identical marks on their backs. "Twins…" Flare said. The two mermaids slowly turned around. Their eyes had turned red "Oh, crap…" Flare groaned. Wires began crawling down there arms and tails, and metal wings extend from their backs.

"You both die here." They said in the same, monotone voice.

"My ass I am!" Flare said, changing to her Rocker form.

Last night a little dancer came dancin' to my door

Last night a little angel Came pumping cross my floor

She said "Come on baby I got a licence for love

And if it expires pray help from above"

Caren and Rina, or at least, the mechanical monsters that looked like them, covered their ears and roared. Flare could vaguely make out Rina's eyes returning to their natural green color, and Caren's turning purple as the wires frayed and the wings shuddered. With just Flare's voice and her guitar, and no stage, it wasn't doing as much, but it seemed to be doing enough.

In the midnight hour she cried- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell she cried- "more, more, more"

In the midnight hour babe- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell- "more, more, more"

More, more, more.

Hanon pushed through the crowd, calling Lucia's name. She finally found her sulking behind a shed.

"There you are!" Hanon said.

"Go away!" Lucia shouted. Her hair had turned completely black.

"Lucia, stop it!" Hanon said. "Kaito wasn't cheating on you. Stephanie was a dragon, and none of us saw it."

"Exactly!" Lucia cried. "Kaito didn't know she was a dragon, either. He could have returned her feelings. And after everything we've been through..."

She don't like slavery, she won't sit and beg

But when I'm tired and lonely she sees me to bed

What set you free and brought you to be me babe

What set you free I need you hear by me

Because

"You don't know that Kaito actually did anything with her!" Hanon shouted. "She was sent here by this... _Time Dragon _Thing to screw with your relationship. I don't think Kaito had any intention of cheating on you."

"I don't _care_ what you _think_!" Lucia screamed, standing up and pushing Hanon back. "I _saw_ Stephanie on top of Kaito!"

In the midnight hour she cried- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell she cried- "more, more, more"

In the midnight hour babe- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell- "more, more, more"

Hanon tensed. Then she slapped Lucia. "Knowing what we know, the fact that it was _Stephanie _on top only proves that Kaito is innocent. You've been wrong about these things before, Lucia! But if you're going to be to damned thick to realize that you could be wrong _again_, than we'll just stop these dragons without you! We stopped Gaito and Michel with six Mermaid Princesses, we sure as hell don't need eight to stop a dragon!" Hanon stormed off. Luchia sank back down to the ground and began to cry.

He lives in his own heaven

Collects it to go from the seven eleven

Well he's out all night to collect a fare

Just so long, just so long it don't mess up his hair.

I walked the world with you, babe

A thousand miles with you

I dried your tears of pain, babe

A million times for you

As Flare sang, two mecha dragons began to pull themselves from Caren and Rina's bodies. Once they were completely free, two Mermaid Princesses sank to the ocean floor, badly injured and unconscious.

I'd sell my soul for you babe

For money to burn with you

I'd give you all, and have none, babe

Just, just, justa, justa to have you here by me

Because

In the midnight hour she cried- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell she cried- "more, more, more"

In the midnight hour babe- "more, more, more"

With a rebel yell she cried "more, more, more"

More, more, more.

Hanon swam up and changed into her Rocker form. The two mecha dragons were starting to feel the effects now, and fled.

Oh yeah little angel

she want more

More, more, more, more, more.

Oh yeah little angel

she want more

More, more, more, more.

"Let's get these guys out of here." Flare said, lifting Rina and Caren. Hanon nodded and grabbed Kaito's arm. A few hours later, Hanon and Flare were sitting in a hospital waiting room.

"Do you think they'll be okay?" Hanon asked.

"I don't know..." Flare said. "Kaito was under for a while, and Caren and Rina... Where's Lucia?"

"I couldn't get through to her. I mean, this isn't the first time this has happened with them, but... I guess with their relationship having been so solid for so long..."

"Excuse me?" A nurse said. Hanon and Flare looked up. "Your friends should be fine, but the two girls will have to stay here for a while."

"How long?" Flare asked.

"The doctor recommended one to two weeks."

"Can we see them?" Hanon asked.

"This way." The nurse said, leading them into a room. "What happened to them?"

"Machinery accident." Flare said.

"Well, the one with purple hair-"

"Caren." Hanon said.

"Caren seemed to have the worst of it, and suffered some neurological damage."

"Meaning?" Flare asked.

"Meaning she'll be lucky if she wakes up able to move, let alone remember who she is." The nurse said. Hanon grimaced.

The nurse showed the girls into the room and left. Caren And Rina were in two neighboring beds. "I guess Kaito's in a different room." Hanon said.

"Yeah..." Flare said, more to herself than anyone else. Both Caren and Rina had oxygen masks on, though the nurse said it was only for a few days, and they also had various tubes running out of their bodies. "They don't seem to look to different than they did with..." She stopped mid sentence and covered her mouth.

**Serious writer's block. Sorry this took so long, I've been doing stuff. And I'll probably title this later...**


	8. Chapter 8

Flare and Hanon rented a motel room close to the hospital. "I hope Caren and Rina will be alright..." Hanon said.

"Kaito, too." Flare added. "And we have to do something about Lucia. If the Time Dragon gets a hold of her the way she is now... She might be willing to do the work for it... Him..." Flare shook her head. "Whatever it is."

"She could be anywhere in Miami, though..." Hanon said.

"She could have also gone home. We all do have our own tickets... Shit."

"What?" Hanon asked.

"Rina may have lost hers, and Caren might need one, when they..." Flare hesitated, then sank onto one of the beds. "Get better..."

"I'm sure they'll be fine." Hanon said, trying to be optimistic. "But what are we going to about Luchia?"

"Well..." Flare said, lying back on her bed. "I suppose there are about three things we can do; Try once more to reason with her, hope she comes back on her own, or do this without her."

"I don't know if we _can_ do this without her. I hate to be so pessimistic, but there's a chance Caren and Rina aren't going to wake up..."

"And even if they do... Caren might be irreversibly brain damaged..." Flare finished, bighting her lower lip. "I think we need to find Lucia. Even if she won't make up with Kaito, which she should, we still need her back. She is our friend, after all."

"Yeah…" Hanon hesitated a minute. "What happened to them, though?" She asked, finally. "Caren and Rina, I mean. Those dragons just… It just didn't look natural."

"It looks like those mechanical dragons can fuse with a host." Flare said, sitting upright. "They looked perfectly fine when I first saw them, except for the monotone voices and dead personalities. And…" Flare thought back to when she saw the two mermaids from behind. "They had identical tattoo-like marks on their backs."

"What did they look like?" Hanon asked.

"They had a vague resemblance to the mech's wings." Flare said. _Maybe…_ She thought to herself. _Maybe we can use that to our advantage in the future…_

The storm was moving at an unusually fast rate, and in an erratic path. People all over Miami stopped to watch the unusual change in weather. The only constant was the dark haired girl at the center. Angry, heart broken and feeling betrayed by her friends, Lucia blindly wandered Miami's streets. "He probably never really loved me." She said aloud. "All those other girls he's been with. That girl he was supposedly just giving surfing lessons to, that psycho bitch Michelle. And then with Stephanie… If I hadn't walked in, who knows how far they would have gone! Well… Fuck him! I don't need him… I don't… Lucia sank to her knees in an alley and began crying.

"You're absolutely right." A voice said from the shadows. "You don't need him."

"Who… Who's there?" Lucia asked.

"A friend…" A young man stepped out from the shadows. He wore a black suit with the collar popped, and had a yellow T-shirt under the jacket. He had long, jet black hair and crimson eyes. "A very important friend."

**Sorry, I know this that long, but it's about as far as I've gotten. Hopefully it'll hold out until I find a hammer large enough to take out this wall I've hit.**


	9. What if?

Flare stood at the airport's ticket line. Most of the people were carrying bags full enough to contain half a house, but not Flare. While most of Miami was evacuating, Flare was exchanging her tickets for new ones. With Lucia missing, and Rina, Caren and Kaito still in the hospital, the girls would be staying longer than planned. The ticket woman looked at Flare like she had two heads when she made the exchange.

"This is the worst storm we've ever had." She said. "Most people are leaving, and you want to extend your stay?"

"I have my reasons." Flare said, paying for the new tickets. She left the airport in a rented Toyota FJ, and drove strait to the hospital. Hanon was waiting for her when she got back. Caren was sitting up in bed, staring at the empty bed next to her.

"Where's Rina?" Flare asked. Then she noticed that Hanon was crying.

"She didn't make it..." Caren said, quietly. Flare gasped and covered her mouth.

"That... Time Dragon..." Hanon said. "We've lost two mermaids already, and the fight has barely started. How do we fight it with both Lucia and Rina dead?"

Flare was silent for a while, then asked, "What happens if a Mermaid Princess dies?"

"After a while, a new Princess will be born from her pearl." Caren said. "But the pearls would have to be returned to their respective kingdoms, and that would be incredibly dangerous."

"So we'd need to fight with just six of us, or risk the pearls to rebuild the team..." Flare said.

"I've seen the Time Dragon first hand." Caren said. "I'm not willing to bring children into this if we can avoid it."

"I don't know if we can..." Flare said. "Two of us have already died, who's to say more of us won't? We'll need a full force... Maybe more than a full force if we even want a thread of hope to cling to."

"Why the hell does this thing even want us, anyway?" Hanon burst out.

"I don't know..." Flare said. "Why did people go after you in the past?"

"For our pearls." Caren said. "For the power we could give them."

"But none of us died!" Hanon cried, sinking to the floor. "None of us were killed... Not like this..."

"It's my fault..." Caren said. "I tried to defend my kingdom, I should have fled."

"You did what you thought was right." Flare said. She walked towards the door, but stopped at the threshold. "We should be careful, from now on." She said. "Tracking down the other five Mermaid Princesses will be hard enough, but we need to make sure that they haven't been possessed by a mech."

Flare left the room, leaving Hanon and Caren in silence. She stopped in the hall and pulled out a cell phone.

"Red Dragon Hotel, how may I help you?"

"Nikora? It's Flare."

"Oh, what's up?"

"A lot, actually." Flare put her hand on her forehead. "We found Caren, but..."

Lucia stood in a corner of the hospital room, her hand over her mouth. Next to her stood her "Important Friend." "Do you still think your life would have been better if you hadn't saved Kaito's life?" He asked. Lucia slowly shook her head. "Follow me" He said, taking Lucia's hand. The scene around them melted into a beach in Japan. Kaito was surfing, and Lucia noticed the chain around his neck containing her pearl. It was some time before they had found each other again. "You know, you were all he really thought about. Despite how he may have acted around other women." The scene shifted again, to the festival where they had first encountered Eriru. Lucia watched as Kaito led a younger version of herself away from a group of girls chasing him.

"But what about that girl he was giving 'surfing lessons' to?" Lucia asked.

"That's all he was doing." The man said. "Just like Stephanie, anything else you saw was _her _doing, not his. He really does love you."

"Take me back..." Lucia said, her hair no longer black.

Flair sat in the hospital room reading a book. Caren and Rina were still unconscious, but were considered stable enough to be taken off the breathing equipment. The rain had stopped, and a double rainbow was spread across Miami. Lucia stepped slowly into the room. Flare looked up and smiled. "Feeling better?" She asked. Lucia nodded. "Who's your friend?"

The man stepped into the room. "Kyohei." He said. "I'm a Time Lord."

Flare almost dropped her book. "L-like Doctor Who?"

"No. That show does nothing to represent us. We are what happens when a Time Dragon drops it's good side, and becomes completely evil. Ironically, though, I guess that would make me the last of my kind."

"He helped me remember how much Kaito means to me, and showed me what would have happened if I hadn't saved Kaito's life before." Lucia said.

"But it's not entirely impossible for what you saw to become reality." Kyohei said. "Time Dragons are more dangerous than anything you've ever faced. And you've already seen what they are capable of."

"So what do we do?" Lucia asked.

"Fight it." Kyohei said. "Clearly, your music has a powerful effect. But you will need to learn more powerful songs. There are various types of rock and metal, you should experiment. But should you come to a point where confrontation will be inevitable, be prepared for physical fights as well." Kyohei turned to leave, but stopped. "One last thing before I go." He said. He waved his hand towards Caren and Rina, reversing the effects of the Mech Dragon's possession. "Give them, and Kaito, a few more days." He said. "They'll be fine."

With that, he walked through the door and disappeared.

**Did I scare you?**

**Sorry I took so long. Hopefully this will help bust a hole in that wall, and I can pump out a few more chapters before the next one.**


	10. Bonus Chapter 1: A History of D Pitch

I don't know whether or not this is against the rules, but since Dragon Pitch ended up being a bit more popular than I expected, I figured that if things got slow I'd do bonus chapters. These will be anything from me talking about the development of the story and older ideas to random side stories like the ones you'd find at the end of some mangas. Hopefully these will help give me ideas if I ever get... _when_ I get stuck again. (I may also use these to put out suggestions for feedback. That's not a bad thing to do, is it?)

So, for this first one I guess I'll start with some back story to the series. I started this WAAAAY back in the seventh or eighth grade. At the start, it wasn't so much a story as random daydreaming during class. Before Flare became a major character, I used myself, because I'm usually not that good at coming up with names. At first, I had a technologically advanced watch that would allow me to shape shift, and I used that to become a stage that would enhance the girls' power. It was maybe a moth after that I came up with the idea of instruments, and my watch became a synthesizer-styled guitar.

The Time Dragon was always there, but as you may have gathered from the almost-half-year gap in the story, I hit walls harder and faster than a big rig with no breaks. So the initial story sent the girls back in time, taking place alongside the events of the original series, but now in America. It was a while before I came up with a name for Flare, but she was always a key element. Initially my girlfriend before the start of the series, she dies at the beginning of the first episode, leaving me her pearl, and with it, her draconic abilities. Later, I started planning a back story for her, detailing our relationship and daily complications that, looking back on them now, were simply ludicrous.

Oh, right. Also, the Dragon Pearl Inn had two different original versions (one for an anime and one for a manga); the Eight Pearl Hotel and the Red Dragon Inn. Both were originally located on where my house stands, do to an "earthquake that destroyed most of the neighborhood and widened the Hudson River." The Red Dragon Inn was referenced in the alternate time line Kyohei showed Lucia, but going over the story I realized that I'd accidentally written it as Red Dragon Hotel. After A while, though, I kinda gave up on it. It didn't resurface until ninth or tenth grade year, when I got a new opening done, involving me meeting Hanon, Lucia and Rina while trudging up a hill to Saunders. Then it died again, until I came up with the story you guys are reading.

So... That's pretty much all the info I'm willing to divulge for now. But I also wanted to ask something; an idea came to me the other day that, since I want to throw in a bit of realism (the Mermaid Princesses aren't all going to converge on Yonkers), maybe the girls should have accents based on the location of their kingdom. This wouldn't affect the story, I just thought it'd be fun to mention. What I've got is this;

Lucia: Japanese, Russian, Canadian or Californian(?), or even Italian, based more on her name than her home.

Hanon: South American (maybe Brazilian?) or South African

Rina: Latina, African, British, Scottish or Irish

Noel: Russian or Canadian

Seira: Australian, Indonesian, Indian

Caren: Australian

Coco: Australian or South American

That's all for now.


	11. Shoveling into the Past

"So she can use crystal to detect other dragons walking around in human form?" The Time Dragon said.

"I knew something was off with that waiter after he brought me the water…" The serpentine dragon said.

"You're disguise was no better!" The left head shouted. "When you took the alias, you should have made sure there was no one else in ht city with the same name!"

"I'm sorry..." The serpentine dragon said.

"We must try a new approach..." The Time Dragon said.

Flare stood on the roof of the Dragon Pearl Inn. Some time had passed since the girls returned from Miami with Caren and Kaito. The entire trip home, Flare had felt something strange inside her, something that was related to Kaito. She knew it wasn't anything romantic, and even if it was, she cared about Lucia too much to interfere with their relationship. It was something more... Powerful, was the only word that came to her mind. But she'd dismissed it, and they'd settled into a pseudo-normalcy, without incident, for close to a month.

_It's kind of nice..._ Flare thought. _Having a normal life again..._ Snow was beginning to fall. It was winter in New York after all. From where she stood, Flare could see the shining lights of Manhattan to her left. At midnight, the Palisade Sills in front of her were just dark shadows, and to her right... For all of her brains, the minor details of Geography eluded Flare. To her right was probably Long Island. _That would make sense... _Flare thought. _Manhattan is North, so South would be..._ She was interrupted when something hard hit her. The snow was turning into hail. Flare quickly ducked back inside.

The weather had only gotten worse by morning. News 12 was calling it the worst ice storm in the history of New York. The lights were all on, since the automated storm shield had gone up around twelve thirty.

"Wow..." Hanon said. The girls were all in the Hotel's dining room. Nikora had made hot chocolate. They could hear the hail hitting the metal plating covering the windows. "This is scary..."

"Remember that one snow storm back at the Pearl Piari?" Rina asked as Kaito walked in and took a seat next to Lucia. "It was so bad we couldn't see five feet in front of us, and we had hippo dragging us around on a sled."

"And Lucia and I both went out looking for each other." Kaito added. "I found her burried in the snow, but the visibility was so bad that we had no Idea we were in front of the hotel until the next day."

"It would have been a good day to stay home and watch TV." Rina said, almost wishfully.

"Instead Rina and I had to go fight Maria on our own," Hanon said, "While you two were cuddled up in a snow fort!" There was some laughter, but the name Maria seemed to kill the mood.

"Who's Maria?" Flare asked.

"An old enemy..."Rina said. "Several years ago, Kaito's older twin brother, Gackto, attempted to conquer the marine world by capturing us and summoning the sea goddess Aqua Regina. Maria was one of his underlings, and was able to manipulate ice."

"But he turned them back into sea creatures..." Hanon said, forcing a smile. "The last time we saw them they were... Spirits, I guess. One of them, Yuri, fell in love with Hippo's human form."

"It doesn't matter!" Hippo interjected, suddenly standing on the table. "They are long gone." Lucia grabbed Hippo.

"Shh! Don't attract any unnecessary attention!" She said.

"That thing talks?" Flare asked, somewhat surprised.

"That's Hippo." Hanon explained.

"The way things have gone since I met you guys, I really shouldn't be surprised." Flare said, leaning back in her chair.

"But as I said," Hippo whispered from Lucia's lap, "They're gone. All of them. We have new enemies to face."

The wind blew harder, and something cracked. Flare sat upright. "I don't know..." She said, suddenly serious. "We are fighting a Time Dragon, after all."

Another crack, and then they heard it. It was practically a whisper, but it was there; "Where are you? I know you're near by..." The voice was being carried by the wind. A car alarm went off.

"This can't be good..." Lucia said quietly.

"I haven't forgotten..." The voice whispered. "What you did to him... What he did to us... To _me..._ All because of you... Hanon... Lucia... Rina... Caren..." The girls shivered at the sound of their names. "You broke my heart... Now _I'm _going to break _yours!_" An entire side of the building came down, letting in a rush of ice and frozen air. In the hole stood a giant, spider-like machine, covered in ice, and at its center was Maria.

"Oh, shit..." Caren swore.

"Oh, and look!" Maria said. "A _new _toy to play with, too!" She reached out a clawed leg at Flare, but she back flipped out of the way.

"Run!" Flare shouted. "I'll keep her busy!"

"Oh, no you don't!" Maria shouted. Walls of ice rose from the snow covered floor, blocking off the exits.

"We're trapped!" Caren shouted. Flare swore, sliding a massive revolver from a compartment in her mechanical arm.

"Play with _this!"_ She shouted, firing six explosive rounds at the mechanized Maria. The blasts were deflected off of an energy shield. "Damn you!" Flare shouted. "I'm not giving up that easily!" Flare spread her wings and launched herself at Maria, firing and reloading the massive revolver.

Maria swatted her out the air like a fly.

"It's not working!" Rina shouted.

"Damn, I was hoping to have some fun..." Flare groaned, getting to her feet. "Well then, you know what to do!"

"Don't even try it!" Maria shouted, firing a volley of missiles at the girls. Flare shot all of the rockets out of the air. More of the building came down. "I'm not going to give you time to transform!"

"Wanna bet!" Flare shouted. She lunged at Maria again, changing into her full dragon form and knocking her out of the building.

"Green Pearl Voice!"

"Pink Pearl Voice!"

"Blue Pearl Voice!"

"Purple Pearl Voice!"

The four Mermaid Princesses transformed into their base Idol forms as Flare flew back into the building.

"Red Pearl Song!"

With Flare, the girls changed into their Rock Star forms. This time they were able to lift the stage through the frozen Hudson River.

"This is... New..." Maria said uneasily. With Caren part of the group now, Flare was left with just her headset as Lucia took guitar and Caren played bass.

"Let's get this over with." Flare said, grinning. The girls began to play, and Flare sang;

Come the war

Come the avarice

Come the war

Come hell

Come attrition

Come the reek of bones

Come attrition

Come hell

This is why

Why we fight

Why we lie awake

And this is why

This is why we fight

When we die

We will die

With our arms unbound

And this is why

This is why

Why we fight

Come hell

Bride of quiet

Bride of all unquiet things

Bride of quiet

Bride of hell

Come the archers

Come the infantry

Come the archers

Of hell

This is why

Why we fight

Why we lie awake

This is why

This is why we fight

And when we die

We will die

With our arms unbound

And this is why

This is why we fight

Come hell

Come hell

This is why

Why we fight

Why we lie awake

This is why

This is why we fight

When we die

We will die with our arms unbound

And this is why

This is why we fight

So come to me

Come to me now

Lay your arms around me

And this is why

This is why

We fight

Come hell

Come hell

Come hell

Come hell

The song barely fazed Maria. "No way..." Hanon said in disbelief.

"Now what?" Lucia asked.

"Wait a second..." Flare said. "You said this was an old enemy, right?"

"She was among our first." Rina said.

"I have an idea!" Flare said. She took off her headset and ran to Lucia. "Give me the guitar!" She said, handing Lucia the headset. Suddenly, the girls reverted to their original Idol forms. Even Flare had one, a dress similar to Rina's but strapless with a skull and crossbones choker. "If we combine your songs of... Love..." Flare still found the idea mildly amusing. "And the power we have with Rock and Roll, maybe we can fight her off!" Flare began to play something that the other girls quickly picked up as a rock version of one of their old songs. Lucia, microphone in hand again, began to sing;

Arashi no umi ni utarete makesou na ima wo

Furiharae ai wo mitsumete kono mune ni

Tachiagaru yo nando demo yakusoku no tame ni

Shakunetsu no raito wo abite shibuki ga mau

Taiyou yori mo atsuku atsuku atsuku

Utagoe wa motto takaku takaku takaku

Ima koso, ima koso

Hageshii kodou afuredasu ai no MELODY

Takanaru kodou shinjitsu wa tatta hitotsu

Kumori no nai kagami ni utsushite

Tsutawaru kodou wakiagaru ai no chikara

Soshite umareru atsui pafekuto hamoni

Ude hirogete uketomeru anata no subete ga

Kurushikute hajimete shitta hontou no ai

Minamikaze yori hayaku hayaku hayaku

Sukooru koete tsuyoku tsuyoku tsuyoku

Ima koso, ima koso

Minna no kodou wo kasaneau iro no hamoni

Nari yamanai de kirameki wo tomenai de

Watashitachi ga torimodosu PARADISE

Kanjiru kodou wo wakiagaru ai no chikara

Soshite hirogaru yume no pafekuto hamoni

Hageshii kodou afuredasu ai no MELODY

Takanaru kodou shinjitsu wa tatta hitotsu

Kumori no nai kagami ni utsushite

Tsutawaru kodou wakiagaru ai no chikara

Minna no kodou wo kasaneau iro no hamoni

Nari yamanai de kirameki wo tomenai de

Watashitachi ga torimodosu PARADISE

Kanjiru kodou wo wakiagaru ai no chikara

Soshite hirogaru yume no pafekuto hamoni

Soshite umareru atsui pafekuto hamoni

The heavy machinery fell away from Maria's body. "You must be fucking kidding me!" She half screamed, half roared. A Mech Dragon tore itself from Maria's body and self destructed. The Dragon Pearl Inn was a wreck, and Flare was furious about it. But a rational part of Flare's mind knew it wasn't directly because of Maria. She dove off the stage and caught the unconscious sea monster before she hit the ground.

The next day, Flare was practically tearing out her hair over the estimated cost of repairs. "The combined cost of my arm and the weapons _in _it wasn't this high!" She shouted. "And go figure the insurance doesn't cover attacks by giant mechanical monsters!" Flare clamped the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger. "Mother... Son of a... _GAAAAAH!"_

Hanon, Lucia, Rina, Caren, Kaito, Hamasaki and Nagisa looked on in mild amusement. Maria, still unconscious, was locked in an empty room.

"Not to mention that after yesterday _no one_ in the area is going to get much business." Flare groaned. "This sucks!"

"It's only going to hurt more if you make it the end of the world." Rina said.

Flare took a deep breath. "Okay... You're right. I can totally get through this. I mean, it could be worse. The Pier View got totally wrecked in that blizzard.

"Speaking of which..." Caren said. "How's that girl?"

"I'm sure she's fine." Flare said.

"I dunno." Caren said. "I've spent time in Antarctica. With what she was wearing, she may need medical attention."

"Don't worry, the redhead is right. I'm fine."

Everyone jumped as Maria walked into the room.

"Y-you're up..." Flare said.

"And... _Out._" Hanon added.

Maria looked at the guys sitting in the lobby before answering. "The door handle in my room was so frozen it shattered when I touched it." She said. "I'd need a new room, or a new door handle, if you expect me to stay here."

"Yeah. Most of the area was wrecked in that blizzard." Flare said slowly. Maria blushed and mouthed the word _sorry._

Hippo and Nikora watched from a doorway. "I guess they aren't gone." Hippo said.

"But they aren't still evil." Nikora said.

"I don't know..." Hippo said. "Those girls can get careless."

"Flare seems to have good judgment. I'm sure we'll be fine, as long as this Time Dragon doesn't dig deeper into the past to bring back old enemies.


	12. A Corvette on the Horizon

"Where are we?" Hanon asked. It had been two days since a possessed Maria had attacked the Dragon Pearl, and the girls had woken up on a sandy beach in the middle of a thick fog.

"It's hard to tell." Flare said. "We should see if we can find any one else, but careful we don't walk strait into the ocean."

"The last thing we need is someone finding out your mermaids." Maria said. They slowly walked up the beach, and soon Flare picked up the sound of laughter.

"This way." She said, walking towards the sound. The sand quickly gave way to wood, then almost instantly to cobblestone. "That's weird." Flare said. "I don't know of any place in New York that had a beach near cobblestone streets." But they could see light cutting through the fog, and the laughter was louder now. Flare lead them to the source of the laughter, which was coming from the closest of the buildings. She pushed open a wooden door, and the girls walked into a bar.

"Todo, I don't think we're in Kansas any more." Lucia said. The bar was more of an inn, an old fashioned wooden building that, like the men and women laughing and drinking, looked like something out of a pirate movie.

"Where are we?" Caren asked.

"These sure as hell aren't Somalian Pirates." Flare said. "It looks like we've ended up in the mid 1700s."

"Looks interesting." Maria said. "Let's take a look." The girls walked into the tavern. The men all seemed to be in good spirits, though most were drunk.

"As long as we're here, maybe we should see if there are any rooms available." Flare said. "I get the feeling that we'll be here for a while." Flare walked up to the bar, followed by Caren and Rina. Hanon and Lucia hung back to look around more with Maria. "Excuse me." Flare said to the woman behind the bar.

"Aye? What can I do for ya?" She said.

"Uh... Do you have any rooms available?" Flare asked, suddenly uncomfortable.

The woman looked at the three girls. "Aye. How long?"

"Uh... Let's start with just for the night." Flare said.

"That'll be thirteen gold pieces, lass." The woman said.

"Shit... I don't think we have that..." Flare said.

"Sorry, lass." The woman said. "I don't give rooms off for nothin'."

"I'll pay for them." A female voice said. "You can take it from my wages."

Caren and Rina spun around. The girl behind them had waist length, deep blue hair and matching eyes. She wore a dress similar to the barmaiden's as well as a blue bandana. A tray of beers was balanced in one hand. "Noel?" Caren said, shocked.

"Hey, Caren, Rina." Noel Greeted the girls. "Who's your friend?"

"She's... New." Rina said, slowly.

"I'm Flare, Flare Natsuha." Flare said.

"Nice to meet you." Noel said. "I'm Noel, Caren's twin sister." Noel looked behind her. "I'd stay and chat, but the boys are still thirsty. They drink like fish." With that, Noel shuffled back into the crowd.

"So, you two be sisters?" The barmaiden asked, looking at Caren. "I don't see it."

"It's... Kind of a long story." Noel said.

"No matter. She said she'd pay yer rent, and I'm not about to argue with that one."

"Hey, how long has she been here?" Rina asked.

"Oh, 'bout a year, maybe. Why, she been missin' at home?"

"No... It's nothing. Thanks." Rina said.

"Don't mention it." The woman said. "M' name's Nancy, by th' way. Pleasure to meat ya."

"You too." Flare said, following the girls back into the crowd.

"It doesn't make any sense." Caren said. "How could she have been gone a year, and no one be told about it?"

"We should worry about that later." Flare said. "We need to focus on finding a way home."

Just then, Hanon found her way to them. "Hey, I think I found something useful." She said. "Maria's made some friends, and one of these guys said something about a time traveling pirate."

"What?" Flare gasped. "Where are they?"

Hanon led them back to the table where Maria and Lucia were sitting with some sailors. "Found 'em!" She said, sitting down.

"Well, lookit that!" One of the men said. "'Tis a match set. Maybe they be from the future after all!"

"Hanon told us you mentioned something about a time traveling pirate?"

"'Twas me who told it." Another man said, leaning forwards. The man had the full pirate look, eye patch, hook, peg leg and all. "And... It ain't so much as the guy was a time travelin' pirate. Yer friend jus' got a bit excited, is all. But, a man come in here maybe t'ree years ago, sayin' he found himself an ol' map. "twas truly somethin' o' legend, that map. Drawn by a Buccaneer who, 'coordin' to legend, had found a stone or somethin' that gave him the ability to travel to th' future." Noel stopped at the table and set a tankard of ale in front of the man. "Thanks, lass." He said. "Accordin' to the legend, the stone was buried with the rest o' his treasure."

"But it's just a legend, right?" Lucia asked.

"And even if it's not, some guy left with the map three years ago, he probably found it already."

The old pirate shook his head. "The ship was lost to another crew. But one member of the crew got away with the map. He was kind enough, howe'er, to give me the map and then fall on my sword." Some of the men at the table laughed. Maria and Flare both tried to suppress smiles.

"So no one can prove it isn't just a legend, then?" Noel asked. She had stayed to listen to the story.

"Maybe one o' ye can tell us." The pirate said, producing the map. Flare's eyes widened. The map was old, worn and stained, but it was barely recognizable as Xerox paper.

"Let me see it." She said. Many of the important details were still legible, but a lot of it was faded. "That... that looks like a gun. It could be an M1 Grand..." Few other symbols stuck for her, except for one mermaid, and what could have been a dragon. "These are the Caribbean Islands over here... Is our present location anywhere on the map?"

"Here." The man said, pointing to one of the islands.

"This is... Cuba. Up here is..." Flare traced a line up into North America and noticed it. "This map was drawn onto a print-out of a modern-day world map!" Flare said.

"What?" Rina, Hanon and Maria said in unison.

"Look, there's a faint outline of the fifty states, and the borders of Canada and Mexico." Flare said. She looked at the man. "Do you have any intention of going after this treasure yourself?"

"Me?" The man asked. "No... I be nobody. Not nuthin', no more.

Though you see me now, the mere ghost of a man,  
I once had the heart of a lion.  
Commanding my ship, between many a shore,  
The ol' Jolly Roger a-flyin'.  
Mine was a name that put fear into men,  
And regret into plenty o' lasses.  
Lo, how I wish I could take back those days,  
As I stare at these empty beer glasses.

I think of the times past when I had it all,  
I toyed with men's wives and their daughters.  
And in my pursuit of this ill-gotten wealth,  
I stabbed and I slashed and I slaughtered.

And for what? (HEY! )  
The men that I've fought,  
Are matched by the number of women I've bought.

And for what? (HEY! )  
I've killed and I've shot,  
And reddened the cold tears of children with blood.

And if I could go back and make my amends,  
I'd make all those mistakes again.  
And kill every last one of those bastards, my friend!

My ship was the last sight that many would see,  
As we narrowed the gap with our quarry.  
Sound of the cannons and splintering wood,  
Did herald our pass into glory.  
We seized all the bounty and scuppered the ship,  
Our hearts hadn't time for no wounded.  
I took my share and the crew got the rest,  
And on into port we did bound it.

Life has many pleasures and we had our fill,  
Of food and of wenches and beer.  
When we tired of the port or had drunken it dry,  
The time to set sail had come near.

And for what? (HEY! )  
We heed no law,  
The other man suffers so we can have more.

And for what? (HEY! )  
We lived every day,  
The noose of the hangman a hairsbreadth away.

And if I could go back and make my amends,  
I'd make all those mistakes again.  
And kill every last one of those bastards, my friend!

Oh, I have seen wonders you never have dreamed,  
And taken my fair share I must say.  
Holds full of booty I happily seized,  
From crews who would not see a new day.  
Spanish gold came and went, and gemstones were sold,  
And I knew more lay on the horizon.  
Yet the beer was too good, and gals were too sweet,  
And now in my old age, it's gone.

These memories were bought with the lives of good men,  
A price that I paid without scruple.  
So many so suffered so I could get drunk,  
And swagger from brothel to brothel.

Now for what? (HEY! )  
It's been many years,  
The screams of the vanquished still ring in my ears.

But for what? (HEY! )  
I've blood on my hands,  
I wait for my place in the halls of the damned.

And if I could go back and make my amends,  
I'd make all those mistakes again.  
I'D KILL EVERY LAST ONE OF THOSE BASTARDS, MY FRIENDS!"

"I like him." Maria said.

Noel jumped. "What the hell is she doing here!" She cried, noticing the sea monster for the first time..

"Relax." Flare said. "She's here for the same reason the rest of us are here. A new enemy has surfaced. A Time Dragon."

"So... She's no longer an enemy?" Noel asked.

Flare shook her head, and looked at the man. "Can we take the map, if you don't intend to use it?"

The man stood up. "I be horribly drunk." He said. "But I'd be damned if I gave up somethin' like this. But ye need gold to pay fer the ship, my services and a crew."

"That's something we don't have." Flare said quietly. She lead the girls back towards the bar. The crowd was mostly gone at this point, so it was easier to move as a group. "But do we want an entire crew? We may have to swim for this thing, it's not worth revealing ourselves since it may actually be something the Time Dragon slipped in."

"'_Our_selves?" Noel asked. "Who are you, anyway?"

"I'm Flare Natsuha. Flare said. I'm the apparently kingdomless mermaid princess of the eighth, red pearl. I'm also a half dragon."

"There's an eighth pearl?" Noel asked, surprised. "I must have missed a lot in the year I was gone."

"I don't think you were gone for a year in our time." Maria said. "But Flare may have a point. But even if we wanted to hire him and a crew, can we afford it?"

"probably not on my wages. Even after a year, ventures like this are expensive." Noel said.

"Do we want to swim the whole trip?" Flare asked.

"I don't think any one will care if ye be mermaids." Nancy said. The girls jumped. "They be a common sight through out th' world."

"H-how did you...?" Flare started to ask.

"Like I said," The woman replied, lifting Noel's pendant. "They be common 'round here."

"Well, unfortunately, in our time, revealing yourself willingly can be fatal. Noel said. "I don't think our physiology will be any different because of time travel."

"Well, when a map be involved," Nancy said, "the treasure's likely buried on an island somewhere. Take the offer, and see what happens."

"Fine." Flare said. She walked back towards the man. "It's your ship, you gather the crew. We don't have anything now, but we only want the stone that'll get us home. Whatever else is there, or anything we may gather on the way there, is yours."

The old man smiled. "Aye." He said. "It'll be strange havin' a female captain, but it'll be nice to be on the high seas again. I suggest we shove off at noon." The man staggered out of the tavern.

"I assume, Noel, that ye be goin' too?" Nancy said.

"Yes, ma'am." Noel replied.

"Well, then, I'll give ye yer pay, and some of my weapons. I've a few cutlasses and a blunderbuss or two. The crew that old coot puts together should have weapons of their own."

"Thanks!" Noel said brightly.

"I'll let's get some sleep." Flare said.

As they headed up the stairs, Nancy smiled and said to herself, "I can't place it, but the green haired lass looks familiar..."

**So a friend of mine recently got me into Scottish Pirate Metal, and it gave me an idea for a story arch. I'm gonna try to push this as far as I can. The songs are probably all going to be by Alestorm.**

***I wasn't particularly happy with this after reading it over, so I redid most of it, and gave the barmaiden a name.**


	13. Bonus Chapter 2: The original Pirates

So, as I'm sure you've all been able to guess, I've hit another wall. Yay. I was hoping I'd be able to get through this story arch, but unfortunately, while I know where I want to go, I have no idea how to get there. That, and the giant, blocky open-world time sink known as Minecraft has found its way into my heart. So I guess it's time for a new bonus chapter. In the hopes of moving the story along, I'll share the original Dragon Pitch pirate's plot, a game idea I had called Revenge of the Black Dragon. (Yes. It was an accident, but the title did end up being a rip-off of Curse of the Black Pearl. The story was a bit, too actually.) I'll be throwing in my own annotations to show that I wasn't, or at least am no longer, completely nuts, and update it so it uses Flare, not me. Or does any one really care about that?

Flare, Hanon, Lucia and Rina were in the main room of the house ((I don't really remember, but it's probably the small manager's house outside of the 8 Pearl Hotel.)). Flare was on the computer, playing a game with Rina, and losing. Hanon was on Flare's bed, and Lucia was in the water. ((I'll explain the layout in a future bonus chapter.))

"It's Sunday night, and nothing interesting happened all weekend!" Hanon whined.

"Yeah, I know." Flare agreed. Suddenly, a time loop burst through the wall, and dumped them in an old town, under attack by pirates. ((At the time, the "time loops" were physical entities, visible only to the Mermaid Princesses and [Flare]. They were simply rings of fire, resembling a window through time.)) One of the pirates grabbed Rina as the crew retreated to their ship, the Black Dragon. The town is a wreck.

Hanon, Lucia and Flare stared at the ship as it sank over the horizon.

"That's not good." Said a villager who had walked up behind them. "Men who live at see will do nasty things to women. An' if she don't comply, she'll be walkin' ((You know what, that's just too stupid to even finish. Thank God I've gotten better at writing.))

"Damn!" Flare shouted. "We should see if we can find someone who knows something about these pirates and where they can be found."

((Gameplay, the player controls [Flare] as [she] searches out someone with information. The objective is completed upon locating a man who looks like an older version of Kaito.))

The girls walked up to the man. Lucia gasped, seeing that he looked exactly like Kaito, only he wore an eye patch, and had a hook in place of his left hand.

[Can you tell us anything about the ship that just left? The Black Dragon?" Flare asked.]

"Aye." The man said. "I can tell ya 'bout the Black Dragon. But first... thell me why yer dress so strange."

"We aren't... From here..." Flare said.

"Were from the future." Hanon said.

"That be explainin' the lass's iron arm." The man said. "I used the be a part o' the crew. T' be honest, we were just tryin' ta make ends meet. Then me family-"

"Sorry to interrupt," Flare said. "But were on a tight schedule. Where would they be after kidnapping a girl?"

"On Pirate Island." The man said. "If it still be there. It's out on the river there."

"The Hundson River..." Flare said. ((What... The eff... Was I smoking...))

((Levels are relatively short. Level one consists of fighting through some left behind pirates to get to a ship that I assume you were supposed to steal, followed by getting that ship out of the dock and through a wave of canon fire in level two. This is getting painful to relive...))

As the ship sailed away from town, the girls changed into some clothes Flare found below

"That was to close for comfort." Flare said.

"Yeah..." Hanon agreed.

"Oh, no..." Lucia moaned. "We're sailing into a storm!"

((Level three is about as BS as the rest of this game. Maybe more. Sail through the storm. Wheeee...))

Rina was bound to a tree on Pirate Island. One of the pirates slashes at her shirt, barely missing her flesh. "Get away!" Rina shouted.

The captain looked as if he was about to slap her, when one of the other pirates called out, "Ship ahoy!"

((This goes into Boss Battle one. The girls sing Legend of Mermaid, while Flare, originally me, fires a barrage of cannons at the island. 'Cause that's totally not going to put Rina in any more danger, right?))

A cannonball hit the tree Rina was tied to ((See? what'd I just say?)) and one of the wood chips slices through the rope.

I can't bring myself to finish this. Long story short, They get to the island, Flare goes back out to gather the ship fragments as the pirates escape. The ship is rebuilt a either a flying, submersible or hyperspeed-capable ship. It makes no difference as, the submersible feature would have a point and the ship's going to fly anyway. They go back to town, then immediately said out to fight the Black Dragon again, only this time the crew has turned into a bunch of raging idiots flaming skeletons in the sunlight (I smell a lawsuit...). Fight them, sink their ship, fight a giant raging idiot flaming skeleton, defeat that, then fly your ship through the rapidly shrinking time loop home. Yay. But yeah, this is the original pirates story for the original Dragon Pitch. Unfortunately, I realized shortly after publishing the firs bonus chapter that I no longer have the original first... eight, I believe, episodes. But, you can just watch the first eight episodes of the original series to get the basic idea. Yes, I was _that_ unoriginal.


	14. The Adventure Begins

"The first thing we should do is buy some new cloths." Rina said. "We stick out in what we're wearing."

The sun was rising and the fog had lifted. The girls were standing on the cobblestone streets of the harbor town.

"I'll pay for whatever we didn't get from Nancy." Noel said. It took less than an hour for them to find clothes and extra weapons. Lucia, Hanon and Caren both had dresses similar to Noel's while Rina, Flare and Maria had more male-oriented clothing, breeches, waistcoats, belts, boots and the like. Flare had also found herself a tri-cornered hat.

"This stuff will be great for Halloween next year." Flare said.

"If we get home for it..." Caren said.

"Oh, come on!" Flare said. "This is exciting! We're in a new time, a new place! We've found your sister. It's an adventure!"

"But how do we know this map wasn't just dropped here by the Time Dragon? How do we know this thing will still work if it is real?"

"We don't." Flare said. "We just have to hope for the best. Trust me, that's crossed my mind as well. But we can't just sit here and do nothing!"

"She's right." Noel said. "Right now, this is the best chance we have."

"I know..." Caren said.

"Come on, the ship is waiting." Rina said.

The ship was a massive brigantine. The two-masted ship was an imposing sight in the dock. It was the largest, and by far the oldest. A colony of barnacles had gathered on the bottom of the hull, and the wood was rotting in places, but overall it looked like it could still sail.

'Welcome aboard!" The old pirate shouted. "Looks as if everyone be ready t' go."

"As ready as we'll ever be." Flare said, leading the girls onto the ship.

"By th' way," The old pirate said. "My name be Captain Morgan."

"Like the rum?" Caren whispered to Rina. Rina shrugged.

It was about an hour before the ship, the Black Dragon, was ready to sail. Noel stood at the back of the ship, watching the town slowly disappear over the horizon. Caren and Rina soon joined her.

"Have I mentioned, yet, that it's nice to have finally found you?" Caren asked.

Noel laughed. "Yes," She said. "Yes you have. But I'll hear it again, just for the sound of your voice."

"How did you end up here, anyway?" Rina asked.

"I don't know…" Noel said. "One night, I was home, in bed, then when I woke up, I was on the beach."

"Sounds like us." Rina said. "Is it possible that we left at the same time?"

"Maybe." Caren said. "But why would only Noel have been sent one year farther back?"

"I don't think we found each other on purpose…" Rina said.

"What do you mean?" Noel asked.

"If the time dragon sent you back, it was to prevent us from finding you. If he sent us back, it may have been to prevent us from stopping him."

"There is another possibility." Flare said. "Let's say we were meant to find you." She looked at Noel. "This map could easily lead to danger, not to mention were on a ship full of men, sailors, and we could be at sea for a long time searching for this stone. And Captain Morgan's life story. It's highly likely that finding Noel was just to provide a sense of false hope. We may not be expected to survive." The girls paled. "But we've come out of tough spots before, and we're two stronger. On top of that, I'm sure you've come out of worse situations. And if need be, we can swim. So I'm sure we'll be fine."

"Kaito's probably worried sick about me…" Luchia said, standing at the front of the ship.

"Everyone is probably worried about us." Hanon replied. "We'll have been missing all day."

Flare had moved to the captain's quarters to examine the map with Captain Morgan. "So, we're here…" Flare said, pointing to a spot close to the island they had just left.

"Aye," Morgan said. "And the treasure you be seekin', accordin' to the map, be 'round here somewhere. With clear skies and fair winds, t'is just a day or two away."

"Yeah…" Flare said, moving to the door. "But somehow I doubt we'll be granted such good fortune." She walked back out onto the deck and rounded up the girls. "Captain Morgan says we should only be a day or two away, weather permitting."

"I hope the weather's permitting, then." Luchia said. "I don't like the way these guys are looking at us."

Flare turned around, and a few of the pirates turned away. "Maybe they're just superstitious…" Flare said. "In these times, it's believed to be bad luck to bring a woman on board. And there are seven of us. It's like breaking a mirror."

But Flare wasn't so sure.

That night, a storm broke. The girls, all sleeping in the captain's quarters, were awoken by a mighty crash of thunder.

"What's going on?" Luchia cried.

"Storm." Flare said. "Big one."

"Ouch!" Hanon cried. She had been rolled under a table, and banged her head as she tried to sit up.

Flare looked out the window next to her. It was pitch black, except for the frequent bolts of lightning, and the glass was drenched. Captain Morgan burst through the door. He looked as if someone had thrown him overboard. "Oh, good." He said. "Yer all alright.

"Speak for yourself." Hanon said, rubbing her head.

"What's with this storm?" Rina asked.

"Just came out o' nowhere." Captain Morgan said. "The crew be working to keep us steady, but it be very difficult in these here winds. And none of us can see anythin'. We'll be lucky if we make it through in one piece."

Flare swore. "Is there anything I can do to help?" She asked.

"Just stay in here, all o' ya. I wouldn't want you flyin' overboard. It's unlikely we'd e'er be able to find ya 'fore ya drowned."

"We're all capable swimmers." Flare said. "But fine."

The storm lasted for hours, but the girls were able to sleep through most of it. When the sun came back out, it was noon, and most of the crew had gone to bed. A bleary eyed Captain Morgan was at the helm.

"Do you want me to take the wheel?" Flare asked.

"I don't see how it could hurt." Morgan said. "I'll see if I can't wake someone up to man the galley, see if there's anythin' left to cook. Just try to keep us in a straight line. I don't want us getting' any more lost than we are."

Flare almost pulled the wheel to the left falling over. "Lost!"

Morgan laughed. "Don't worry." He said. "I've been lost before."

**OH. MY. GOD. It's an update Sorry for taking so long, but on top of writer's block, I was sucked into the advent of MineCraft. Then there was also the recent re-release of APB: Reloaded. But here it is. And I've transferred the story to my non-gaming laptop, so I can find places AWAY from the games to work.**


	15. A Battle at Sea

"This means we could be out here for considerably longer than anticipated." Caren said. "Our 'two-day' journey just got longer."

The girls were sitting in the captain's quarters, and Flare had just told them the news.

"Maybe not." Rina said. "Pirates used stars to help them navigate, right? So when night falls, we should be able to figure out our location."

"I hope so." Luchia said. "I want to get home as soon as possible."

"Ship ho!" Someone called from outside. The girls rushed out onto the deck.

"Maybe we can ask them for directions." Hanon said hopefully.

"Not likely." Captain Morgan said, appearing next to them. "If it be another pirate ship, they may well attack us. If it be a British navy ship, we'll certainly have a fight on our hands. Otherwise, if it be a merchant ship, then we'll be plunderin' it for ourselves. Maybe then we can get directions."

"Wait, you want to attack a defenseless ship?" Caren cried.

"Our payment was the brunt o' this treasure ye seek, as well as "whatever else we collect along the way.'" Morgan said. "Remember?"

"Me and my big mouth…" Flare groaned.

But it was the other ship that fired first, and as it closed in Flare could see a Union Jack.

"I take it that's the navy, then." Flare said. "I have no idea what to do now. If you want to lead this fight, Captain Morgan, go right ahead."

"Aye aye." Morgan said. "All hands on deck!" He shouted. As the crew scrambled to the deck he shouted a series of commands.

"We should probably get our guns together as well." Flare said.

"Right!" The other girls nodded in unison. They rushed back to the captain's quarters as another canon ball sailed overhead, narrowly missing the ship. Flare grabbed a blunderbuss and a cutlass, while the girls grabbed flintlock pistols and rapiers.

"Be careful with those!" Noel said. "They'll only fire one shot before you have to reload them, and don't get them wet. They won't fire."

"Got it." The girls said, rushing back onto the deck.

When they got there, the fight had already started. The British naval ship had taken a considerable amount of damage from cannon fire, but had made it close enough to board, and the clanging of swords was prevalent across the deck. Flare drew her own cutlass. "Careful guys." She said. "Sword fighting isn't going to be easy." As she spoke, a British soldier aimed a flintlock pistol at her. She fired her blunderbuss at the last second, separating the man's head from his shoulders. "How dare you point your gun at a woman?" Flare said.

Maria fired her flintlock at a British soldier's head, but missed, and a group of them surrounded the girls. "Well, fuck." Maria said. She, Caren, Noel, Hanon, Luchia and Rina drew their swords, and broke through the circle of soldiers.

"Retreat!" Someone shouted. The British soldiers, still fighting off Captain Morgan's crew, began to retreat back to their ship.

"Charge!" Captain Morgan shouted. "Take the ship!" But a line of riflemen on the British ship opened fire. Several of the pirate crew fell, and Hanon shrieked, grabbing her shoulder.

"Hanon!" Luchia cried. The girls rushed over to Hanon. She had been hit in the shoulder, and was bleeding heavily.

"Let them go." Flare said. "I doubt they'll get far in that condition anyway."

"Pity." Captain Morgan said. "I wager they be carryin' some mighty fine booty."

"More than we may have realized." Caren said, sounding panicked. "Where did Rina go?"

The captain of the British naval ship stared at the bars of the ship's brig. "How well do you think your ship will manage without you, _Captain?"_ He said.

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about." Rina said. "I'm not the captain, so I think they'll be fine."

"Don't play dumb. You're one of the most notorious female pirate captains in this part of the world, so I know exactly who you are!"

"Back off, before I pull your head through these bars by your ears." Rina said.

"You're lucky the bounty on your head is so high, or I'd have you shot where you stand." The captain said. Then he left Rina alone.

"We have to chase them!" Flare shouted.

"We can't!" Captain Morgan shouted back. "We don't have the man power t' track them down or fight them. We can't even continue the journey you hired me for. The best we can hope for is t' make it t' the nearest port. Besides, I think your bucko be in need o' a doctor." Flare swore under her breath. He was right, Hanon needed a doctor, and Rina was only a passenger on the ship, She would be all right.

"Fine." Flare said. "I'll go check on Hanon and the others." A section of the crew's quarters had been turned into a sick bay for all of the injured crew, and Hanon. Though besides her, there were only four other men in the room. Everyone else was either in good condition to work or dead. Flare walked below deck. _Rina's gone, Hanon's injured and we don't have enough of a crew to go after either the stone or the navy ship. This fucking sucks._ Flare walked into the sick bay. Caren, Noel, Luchia and Maria were already there with Hanon. "How's she doing?"

"She's breathing." Maria said.

"She's been out cold for over an hour." Luchia said. She sounded like she was about to cry.

"We need to get her to a doctor, and get that bullet out of her shoulder." Flare said. "Hopefully it'll help, but only if we can get it out before the lead ball poisons her."

**Oh. My. God. An update Hopefully, now that I've gotten around the issue of not knowing how to get where I want to go, I can update more frequently (around video game time, anyway ;) ). Part of the issue though, has been that I've got the next several story archs, in my head so those keep distracting me.**


	16. Time Twins!

When Flare woke up, the ship had slowed, and a bell was ringing. Not wishing to walk out onto the deck in only a large shirt, she put on a pair of pants and quietly crept out of the Captain's Quarters.

"Had a nice sleep, lass?" Captain Morgan called from the aft deck. He was standing at the helm of the ship, and looked like he'd been up all night.

"Wonderful." Flare said. "Except that all I could think about was Hanon dying from lead poisoning."

"Don't worry." Captain Morgan said. "We've reached the port of High Cross. There should be a doctor here."

Flare looked over the bow of the ship, and gasped. High cross was a large, wealthy-looking English town. The place looked busy, with people crowding the streets, and moving in and out of different buildings. "Wow…" Flare said. It doesn't look like we've gone that far, actually."

"We're still in the Caribbean," Captain Morgan said. "Several miles North o' where we started."

"Do you think they'll just let us walk around?" Flare asked. "We are pirates."

"I don't think they'll mind." Captain Morgan said. "Go get your friends."

Flare nodded and went to wake the girls. When they came back, fully dressed, the ship had docked. "Should we find the doctor and bring him here?" Lucia asked.

"I think we should just find the doctor," Caren said. "And decide from there."

"I'll stay with Hanon." Maria said.

Flare nodded, and said, "let's go." They walked down the gangplank and into town. As they walked, it occurred to Flare that they were the only women dressed as sailors, even Caren, Lucia and Noel, who had swapped their dresses for cotton shirts and trousers. And they were attracting dirty looks from both men and women.

"What's up with them?" Caren asked.

"I think it's the fact that we're all dressed like men." Noel said. "It's very rare for women to dress like sailors, and the only women that dress like this, and sail, are pirates."

"Well, as long as they're willing to tell us where their doctor is, we'll be out of their hair soon enough." Flare said. "But this is a very nice town."

"Why do you want our doctor?" Said a man who had been walking behind them. "Have you come to hijack him?"

"A friend of ours was shot." Flare said, turning around. "I'd like the musket ball removed from her shoulder before she dies of lead poisoning."

"Right. Pirates like you deserve to be shot and killed, or hanged."

Flare grabbed the man by his shirt collar, and pulled him down so they were eye level. "We're not pirates." She said. We just happened to hire a pirate crew to help us get home, and I'd prefer it if we could all get home _alive._"

"Well, that won't happen if you kill the doctor." The man said. "So get off of me, and bring her here."

"You're the doctor?" Caren asked.

"That's right." The man said. "Now would you kindly _let go?_"

Flare released the man's shirt. "Caren, you and Noel go get Hanon. Me and Lucia will stay here with Doctor…"

"My name isn't important." The man said.

"Of course, we're only going to see you for a little while, I hope." Flare said, rolling her eyes. "We'll stay here with the doctor." Caren and Noel nodded, and ran back to the ship. Forty-five minutes later, the bullet had ben removed from Hanon's shoulder, and she was resting in a bed at the doctor's house. Flare, Lucia, Caren, Noel, Maria and Captain Morgan were sitting at a table in his kitchen.

"So, will she be alright?" Lucia asked.

"The bullet is out, and there are only minor signs of infection." The doctor said. "You girls did an amazing job at wrapping that wound. The apothecary should be here son with something to help with that infection, but it's lucky you got here when you did. She might've lost the arm." Bothe Lucia and Noel cringed.

"I know what that's like…" Flare said, flexing her right arm.

"So," Captain Morgan said. "Any idea if I'd be able to round up a new crew here? We lost most o' the last one in a battle at sea."

"I don't know." The doctor said. "And I don't really care. I don't fancy the idea of associating myself with the likes of pirates, privateers, or foreigners, though I may not be as harsh towards the later as others here may be." He added, looking at the girls.

"Would we at least be able to get a room until Hanon is healed?" Flare asked, suddenly conscious of her Japanese accent.

"Is your ship not good enough anymore?" The doctor asked.

"I just figured that as long as we've pulled ashore, we may get some real rooms for the night." Flare said.

"And some ale." Captain Morigan added.

The doctor simply rolled his eyes.

Rina woke to the sound of heavy canon fire. She could tell by the change in the ships motion that it had stopped moving, and it was taking a lot of hits. Within minutes, the canon fire was replaced by gunfire, and even that didn't last long. _What the hell is going on?_ Rina thought. Soon after the gunfire stopped, she heard footsteps, and an unfamiliar pirate walked in.

His face paled as soon as he saw Rina, and he hurried back out, screaming "Captain! Captain!" He returned shortly after, with someone else.

"Go fetch this ship's captain." The woman said. Her voice was vaguely familiar, but Rina couldn't place it.

"Aye, Cap'n." The pirate said. He hurried out, and returned shortly after, dragging the bloody, bruised and utterly terrified ship's captain.

"It's not like you to take prisoners, Major." The woman said.

"I-I thought she was you!" The ship's captain said. As he spoke, the woman raised the lantern she was carrying. Rina gasped. The face she was looking at was her own. "C-captain Lina!"

**Le Gasp!**


	17. Wolves of the Sea

"Let her out." Captain Lina said. The Major scrambled over the cell and unlocked it. Slowly, Rina stood up and walked out of the cell. Captain Lina walked up to her. "Tell me, lass. How is it that you look like me?"

"I…" Rina started, to shocked to speak. "I'm from the future." She said.

"Throw him overboard." Captain Lina said, nodding at the Major. "And leave us alone." The other pirate nodded, and dragged the stunned Major off. Once she was sure they were out of earshot, Captain Lina asked, "What Kingdom are you from?"

"W-what?" Rina asked.

"What mermaid kingdom are you from?" Captain Lina repeated.

"North Atlantic." Rina said.

Captain Lina gave a partial smile. "How do I know this ain't one of Davey Jones' tricks?" She asked.

"Who?" Rina asked. "Look, I don't know how or why I'm here but I was sent back to this time with Hanon, Lucia, Caren, Flare and Maria, and we're trying to find some magic stone so that we can get home."

"How d'you afford a ship if you just came here?"

"We met a man named Captain Morgan shortly after we got here. He had a ship and hired the crew, and told him whatever money or treasure we found, he could keep, because we only need the stone."

"A time travelin' stone, eh?" Captain Lina said thoughtfully. "I think I heard something about that. But if you're here with friends, how did you end up on this ship alone?"

"This ship attacked us. Their captain took me, apparently under the assumption that I was you."

"Well, I can't in good conscious leave my kin stuck here." Captain Lina said. "I'll just tell my crew that you're my twin sister. Come on."

Rina followed her past self up onto the deck, and across a splintering gangplank onto Captain Lina's ship, a massive Spanish Galleon. As she said, Captain Lina told the crew that Rina was her missing twin sister, and most of the crew just went with it.

"And I expect her to be shown the same respect you show me." Captain Lina said. "Understood?"

"Aye, Captain!" The crew shouted, collectively.

"Alright, then." Captain Rina said. "Let's get out of this smoke before we all die of something."

"Alright, the Naval ship fled due North East." Captain Morgan said, standing on the bow of his ship. The girls had been eager to find Rina, so after securing a new crew, they had set off the next day. Because Hanon was still showing minor signs of infection, they had dragged the Doctor along with them.

"You know, I'm the tenth doctor this has happened to." The Doctor said.

"Oh, He counts, does he?" Captain Morgan said. The Doctor made a face at the back of his head.

"I'm sorry." Flare said. "If Hanon gets better, we can drop you off some place you can get a ship back home."

"You were saying something about the direction that naval ship went?" Maria cut in.

"Aye." Captain Morgan said. "Given the amount o' damage they took, we should be able t' catch the ship by noon."

"I hope they weren't attacked by another pirate ship." Noel said.

"Why do you even care? Aren't you going to just go finish them off anyway?" The Doctor asked.

"If another ship got t' them, they'll get whate'er treasure the ship held." Captain Morgan said.

"Not to mention they have our friend." Caren said.

"Wait a sec," The Doctor said. "What's all that smoke over there?"

Captain Morgan pulled out a Monocular and looked at the smoke. "That looks like our ship…" He said grimly.

Lucia gasped. "Does that mean she's…?"

"Either dead, or captured." Captain Morgan said. "If she's been captured, she may be as good as dead anyway."

"Comfortable?" Captain Lina asked. She had given Rina some of her clothes.

"Yes, thank you." Rina said, examining herself in the mirror.

"Well, I'm glad I found you." Captain Lina said. "The fact that you're still the Princess of the North Atlantic means that I'll be successful in my quest."

"What quest?" Rina asked. "And why _are_ you commanding a ship, and not at your kingdom?"

"There isn't much left to be there for." Captain Lina said, sadly. "Four months ago, we were attacked. An old galleon, like this one, sailing underwater. The captain called himself Davey Jones. He wanted to take over, and we resisted. I barely escaped with my life."

"That's horrible!" Rina said. "But how will you find him?"

"I've no idea." Captain Lina replied.

"Well, I'll help, as long as I'm here." Rina said. Captain Lina smiled. "But, how did you find a crew that would help you with this?" Rina asked as they walked out onto the deck. "Especially without… revealing anything?"

"Simple." Captain Lina said. "I just hired the bravest seafarers I could find." She led Rina to the aft deck. "Men who love the sea more than life itself." As Captain Lina spoke, the crew began to sing.

With a hii hii hoo and a hii hii hey!  
We're hoisting the flag to be free  
We will steal the show, Jolly Rogers go  
We are wolves of the sea

Don't try to run it's all set and done  
There's treasure in sight  
We are robbing you blind I hope you don't mind  
We are taking it all tonight

Just walk away we'll conquer it all  
Pirates will stand and the loser will fall

With a hii hii hoo and a hii hii hey  
We're bound to be close to the sea  
Our captain will stand on the bridge and sing  
Pirates are all we can be

With a hii hii hoo and a hii hii hey!  
We're hoisting the flag to be free  
We will steal the show, Jolly Rogers go  
We are wolves of the sea

Down to the core we're coming for more  
With a sword close at hand ha ha  
We are scary and bold chest full of gold  
We get sealegs when sighting land

The hook of our captain is looking at you  
There's no Peter Pan so what can you do

With a hii hii hoo and a hii hii hey!  
We're bound to be close to the sea  
Our captian will stand on the bridge and sing  
Pirates are all we can be

With a hii hii hoo and a hii hii hey!  
We're hoisting the flag to be free  
We will steal the show jolly rogers go  
We are wolves of the sea

With a hii hii hoo and a hii hii hey!  
We're hoisting the flag to be free  
We will steal the show jolly rogers go  
We are wolves of the sea

With a hii hii hoo and a hii hii hey!  
We're bound to be close to the sea  
Our captian will stand on the bridge and sing  
Pirates are all we can be

With a hii hii hoo and a hii hii hey!  
We're hoisting the flag to be free  
We will steal the show jolly rogers go  
We are wolves of the sea  
We are wolves of the sea

**So, Just in case anyone was unaware, I didn't make up Captain Lina's name, nor did I use it to differentiate the two Rinas (because in case you couldn't tell, I have the habit of calling the captains "Captain [name]". Captain Lina's name is actually a joke on the mistranslations of Rina's name in the fansubs of the anime, caused by the letters "L" and "R" making similar sounds in Japanese. Also, I don't know if I can advertise stuff like this, but I have a Tumblr now (.com), and while I don't do much with it in regards to my writing (though I may in the future), I have APB screenshots that can give you a fairly decent representation of how Flare looks, in so far as the limits of the game and my skills with the character creator. Just for fun, I may set up a photo reply post, and anyone with APB and an extra character slot can submit their best representation of Flare. I'll let you know about that by the next chapter.**


	18. Of Treasure

"What do we do?" Asked Hanon. "We don't even have her pearl, and without that…"

Lucia started crying.

"Oh, come on, guys." Flare said. "I'm sure she's fine. Maybe one of us should swim down and see if she's down there waiting for us to get her."

"But how are we supposed to get off the ship, and then back on, with out revealing ourselves to a ship full of pirates?" Caren asked.

Just then, Captain Morgan came barging in. "I've got some news that may be o' interest to ya." He said. "We found the captain o' that British ship clingin' to a piece o' driftwood. He say's yer friend was taken by another pirate, Captain Lina."

"Captain Lina?" Noel asked. "Who's that?"

"She's a feared pirate 'round these parts." Said Captain Morgan. "As much so for her insanity as her ruthlessness. They say she be on some mad quest for Davey Jones, or some such nonsense."

"Then we need to find them," Maria said. "Before Rina gets hurt!"

"Oh, I wouldn't worry to much 'bout it." Captain Morgan said. "Y'see, Yer friend's been botherin' me since we first met, an' now I know why. She be a spittin' image o' Captain Lina."

"What?" Lucia cried.

"Well, I can't say that comes as much of a shock." Flare said.

"She's right." Caren said. "We are in the past. It shouldn't be such a surprise that past incarnations of ourselves are wandering around."

"True" Noel said. "But who would have thought that Rina would have descended from pirates?"

"Besides," Lucia chimed in, "I would think that in this time, it would be different people all together, not just the same people with different names." Hanon nodded.

"But that leaves the question of what to do first." Maria said. "Find Rina? Or go after the stone?"

"Captain Lina, though a bit loopy, is a fearsome and able captain." Captain Morgan said. "Rina should be in good hands with her. The treasure ye seek, on the other hand, could be discovered at any moment. The time we spend finding Captain Lina's ship, and the time we've already wasted, gives another treasure hunter more time to find the treasure, and yer stone."

"I hate to say it," said Flare, "but he's right. With any luck, either we'll run into them on the way, or Rina can convince her pirate ancestor to meet us there."

"Without a map?" Maria asked.

"Rina has a good memory." Hanon said. "As long as she can remember where the 'X' is, she should be fine."

"I hope you're right." Flare said.

Just then, the Doctor walked in. "Well, the captain will be alright, provided you plan on letting him live." He said.

"Well, I don't see any reason fer lettin' him live." Captain Morgan said. "We ain't got a brig, so he'd just be takin' up space in th' hold."

"I really don't want to murder a defenseless man." Flare said. "I mean, if we were still fighting him it'd be a different story, but… Maybe we could just hold him until our next landing."

"I think he'd rather die than go on this journey." Said the Doctor. "We could hear you talking below decks, and the man had some interesting things to say about our destination."

"Interesting how?" Captain Morgan asked.

"You should ask him yourselves." The Doctor replied.

"Alright, well, lets go see what this guy has to say." Flare said. She followed Captain Morgan below decks to the cargo hold, where the naval captain was tied to a barrel.

"The Doctor says you have some interesting comments about our trip." Flare said.

"They aren't just 'comments.'" The captain said. "The treasure you're after is cursed."

"What d'you mean, 'Cursed?'" Captain Morgan asked.

A dreaded curse - is spoken of  
By all men of the sea - an ancient tale  
Of pirate's woe - and sailor's tragedy

A map was drawn - by grizzled men  
Forgotten years ago - a chest of glory  
And mortal sin - the none should ever know

And they searched and they searched  
And they searched and they searched  
For forbidden treasure old  
And this curse, and this curse,  
And this curse, and this curse  
Will forever now be told

A pirate captain - of many years  
Had heard these whispers grim - but lust for treasure  
And endless wealth - had all but blinded him

He hired a crew - of hardy men  
To help him in his cause - they never knew  
The danger of - this bounty's evil force

And they searched and they searched  
And they searched and they searched  
For forbidden treasure old  
And this curse, and this curse,  
And this curse, and this curse  
Will forever now be told

Now stormy nights - when moon is full  
Will herald in their call - a ghostly crew  
Who loot and kill - 'til all before them fall  
Now listen, lad - remember this  
When foul winds blow agale - lest shadow come  
And write your name - in adage to this tale

"Oh, That be a load of hooey, made up by th' Navy ta keep us off the waters!" Captain Morgan shouted.

"We may have started the legend," The captain said. "But we didn't make it up. I first heard of the legend from a mad pirate just before he was hanged."

"Yeah," Flare said. "A _mad_ pirate. As in 'crazy?' And what, he was just driven insane by this cataclysmic event, right?"

"That would be my guess."

"The way you tell it," Flare said, "he couldn't have survived this run-in. So, thanks, but I think we'll take our chances."

"Well, if you want to go on this suicide mission, be my guest. But I would much rather be dead than dragged through hell."

"I'd be more'n happy to oblige." Captain Morgan said, drawing his sword.

"But we'll be dropping you off at next landfall." Flare said. "So for the time being, you're in for the ride."

**UUUUURRRRGH FORCE UPDATE…. BRAIN PAIN…. DUUUUURRRRRRRR**

**Yeah. Anyway, new people have started following this story so I guess I should pick it up again. I hate my writer's block and short attention span, but since I don't really give a crap about APB any more, and I'm expecting the next update to be a major disappointment the only distraction I have to worry about for now is college. Yay. So, this one feels a bit short, but as I said above, it was kind of a force update. Hopefully I can clear this arc soon so I can get stuck halfway through the next one. It'd be even better if I could do it without cutting this arc short, provided I can remember more than it's ending. So…. Yeah…..**


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